The threshold for being overweight or obese has been lowered in India, as people of South Asian origin are more likely than white people to develop obesity-related conditions such as Type 2 diabetes and heart disease.

Indian health experts have also called for the threshold point to be lowered for all South Asian people across the world, including in the UK.

Global obesity measurements

Standards used around the world to tell when someone is overweight or obese are based on data from white people. These state that people with a body mass index (BMI) of 25 or more are overweight and obese if it goes above 30. BMI is calculated using weight and height.

In India those limits have been lowered to 23 for being overweight and 25 for being obese, to reflect the risks for their own population. They also have lower thresholds for waist circumference measurements.

The move has led to an extra 70 million people being re-classified as overweight or obese. This means that doctors in India are encouraged to intervene earlier, sometimes with drugs or surgery.