Eating More, Nourishing Less: India’s Silent Nutrition Reversal

India stands at a curious crossroads.

Never before have we had such abundant access to food, choice, and culinary variety, yet rarely have we been more nutritionally fragile.

Walk through any metro, and the contradiction becomes evident: food delivery bikes crowded at traffic lights, supermarkets stocked with global brands, cafés buzzing with all-day diners, yet a generation increasingly fatigued, deficient, and dependent on supplements.

This shift didn’t happen overnight.

It happened silently until symptoms became impossible to ignore.

The Indian meal was once an elegant science without needing scientific validation. Dal, vegetables, curd, fermented foods, millets, nuts, seeds, and spices worked together to create what nutritionists now call a “complete diet.” Over time, especially in urban settings, this wisdom gave way to convenience-led choices.

Ready-to-eat meals replaced slow-cooked foods; refined grains replaced whole ones; and packaged snacks quietly occupied the space where fresh, seasonal staples once lived. The question is: are today’s deficiencies truly new, or were earlier generations also falling short, only less visibly?

Urban India represents the most visible form of this nutrition inversion. Long workdays, high stress, sedentary lifestyles, and reliance on restaurant or packaged food create environments where deficiencies flourish despite full plates.

Modern society struggles to consume adequate protein or identify nutrient-rich foods. Convenience isn’t the problem; imbalance is. The Indian Council of Medical Research suggests adults should consume about 60 grams of protein daily, yet urban Indians average closer to 37 grams.

This gap links to child stunting, underweight adults, and even hidden deficiencies among those who appear well‑nourished. But does this mean everyone is protein deficient and must increase intake? Perhaps not. Protein needs may depend on lifestyle, fitness levels, age, and diet quality.

It’s tempting to imagine rural India insulated from nutrient decline, but the reality is more layered. While traditional eating patterns survive better outside cities, food’s nutritional quality has eroded through soil depletion, monocropping, and declining dietary diversity.

Millets have disappeared from many local diets, polished grains dominate household meals, and low-cost packaged snacks have reached even remote villages. The rural population may move more, work harder, and rely less on processed foods, yet nature itself may be offering less nutrition than it once did.

A quiet shift is underway: not in diet, but in the value of the food within that diet.

Amid widespread deficiency, Indians are now turning to familiar foods in unfamiliar forms. Ordinary staples like curd, paneer, and kulfi gain extraordinary appeal when repackaged with "high protein" labels.

There is also a parallel market of whey, plant, soy, and blended protein supplements that has grown rapidly. Historically, cost constraints meant starch-heavy products dominated retail shelves. But something seems to have shifted.

Rising incomes and health consciousness appear to have altered priorities. Surveys suggest over 70% of Indians now read nutritional labels, and nearly 93% are willing to pay more for healthier options. Suddenly protein isn’t just a nutrient, it’s a lifestyle signal.

The surge in protein supplement consumption, fuelled by fitness culture, celebrity endorsements, and social media trends, has raised concerns about safety and misleading claims.

The FSSAI enforces the 2022 Health Supplements and Nutraceuticals Regulations, classifying protein powders and shakes under strict guidelines, requiring companies to prove the quality and authenticity of protein claims.

Routine inspections and lab testing are now common, with regulators seizing products that fail to meet standards or contain adulteration with starches, fillers, or unsafe additives. The law aims not to stifle fitness culture but to protect consumers, ensuring “health in a scoop” doesn’t become a hazard.

While regulatory measures protect consumers, they cannot address why such dependence on supplements has become necessary. India seems to be experiencing a nutrition crisis between what we eat and need, availability and advisability, cultural wisdom and commercial persuasion.

With protein now a buzzword, perhaps people should first get their nutritional levels assessed, identify real deficiencies, and seek guidance rather than chasing trends.

We are still left pondering: how did a country with diverse culinary heritages end up consuming such uniform, refined foods? And how might we adapt in a world where convenience will only grow? The answer lies not in nostalgia, but in recalibration.

India’s nutritional future depends on rebalancing plates, rethinking food literacy and strengthening regulation. The story of protein in India is, therefore, not just about diet; it’s about public health, consumer awareness, and the evolving food industry.

This article is authored by Mr. Biplab Lenin, Partner and Ms. Anika Natani, Associate, Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of NDTV Profit or its affiliates. Readers are advised to conduct their own research or consult a qualified professional before making any investment or business decisions. NDTV Profit does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information presented in this article.