Talking to AFP, Muffazal Lakdawala, Gadkari's doctor at the Centre for Obesity and Diabetes Surgery (CODS) at the private Saifee Hospital in Mumbai, said the political heavyweight was recovering well after his gastric bypass. The surgeon said that Gadkari, leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), tipped the scales at 130 kilograms (287 pounds). He was morbidly obese, claims his doctor, with a body mass index (BMI) of 40.

Affluent lifestyle to blame

India is traditionally more associated with malnutrition and chronic food shortages than overeating and weight-related illness, but economic growth has had an impact on waistlines, particularly in urban areas. The boom has brought a more sedentary lifestyle, while being able to eat oil and sugar-rich foods, particularly Western fast food, is seen as a visible sign of status and increased disposable income.

Between 1998 and 2005, the number of overweight adults in India increased by 20 percent, according to an Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) study published in The Lancet medical journal last year. Almost one in five men and more than one in six women are now overweight.

In some urban areas, rates were as high as 40 percent, the study suggested. Meanwhile, a separate study of 4,000 Indian children conducted in 15 cities, which was published last August, indicated that almost a quarter (23 percent) of five to 14-year-olds in urban schools were overweight, while nearly 11 percent were obese.

Growing awareness

Ramen Goel, a surgeon at the state-run Bombay Hospital, blamed growing rates of obesity on lifestyle changes combined with a genetic predisposition among South Asian people to store more fat. As a result, and due to greater awareness of the availability of the procedure, Goel's workload has increased drastically since he performed the first weight loss operations in India more than a decade ago.

At the turn of the millennium he carried out only about four procedures a year but that rate has now shot up to around 20 a month. Likewise, Lakdawala said doctors at CODS carried out only one or two gastric bypasses a month when they opened in 2005 but now conduct nearly 30 a month. A number of their patients are politicians.

Gastric bypass surgery, which Gadkari underwent, reduces the size of the stomach and length of the intestine that comes into contact with food, so the person eats less and absorbs fewer calories. Other options include placing a gastric band around the stomach, which cuts the amount of food that can be consumed.

AFP
Editor: Manasi Gopalakrishnan