Mustard oil and sesame oil have been used in India / Indus Valley Civilization for centuries along with Butter and Ghee. So fats, staurated fats are not and were not a problem. Our Fat Problem started last last 60 years as India’s edible oil consumption rose more than six-fold since 1960s.
The scientific concern is not that traditional oils suddenly became poisonous. The problem is how much oil modern India now consumes, how often foods are fried and reheated and how dramatically the Indian diet has changed.
-
Mustard oil is traditional.
-
Sesame oil is traditional.
-
Ghee is super traditional.
Did earlier generations of Indians consume edible oil in the SAME quantities that modern India does today?
The answer, based on government data, is clearly no. India consumed 3.2 kg of edible oil per person in 1960-61.
A 2024 report from NITI Aayog provides one of the clearest pictures of India’s changing edible oil consumption. India’s Per-person, Per-annum edible oil consumption increased from:
-
3.2 kg a year in 1960-61
-
3.8 kg in 1980-81
-
8.2 kg in 2000-01
-
15.8 kg in 2012-13
-
19.7 kg and some estimates peg consumption at 23.5 kg per capita per annum, in recent official estimates
That is a more than six to eight fold increase since 1960-61. That works out to roughly 60 grams of edible oil per person per day on a national basis.
Health Epeidemics
The oils may be old. The scale of consumption is historically new. Traditional oil does not automatically mean traditional consumption For centuries, oil extraction required considerable work. Traditional ghani or kolhu pressing was slower and accordingly consumption was relatively lower. People used Oil carefully and consciously.
Modern oil production is completely different – Mechanical expellers, large crushing plants and solvent extraction allow manufacturers to recover oil at industrial scale. Refining, bleaching and deodorising make oils more neutral in taste and suitable for mass distribution. The Seed Oils Revolution. India’s edible oil market has consequently become enormous.
Government data show total edible oil availability at about 27.8 million tonnes in 2023-24. Instead of Kachi Ghani and Ghee Production – India now imports palm oil largely from Southeast Asia and soybean and sunflower oils from major international suppliers. The modern Indian cooking oil is a global industrial supply chain, not simply an enlarged village ghani.
Metabolic Diseases – Diabetes Capital of The World
Along with steadily rising edible oils consumption and a subtle, under-the-surface shift from traditional Ghee and Kachi Ghani Sesame Oil to Industrial Edible Oils – India has experienced a huge rise in diabetes and metabolic disease. Whether there is a cause-and-effect relationship is for scientists to uncover. But the data is in-our-faces.
The large ICMR-INDIAB study estimated that India had 101 million people with diabetes and 136 million with prediabetes in 2021.
It also estimated 254 million people with generalised obesity and 351 million with abdominal obesity. These are extraordinary numbers.
Along with massive growth in edible oil consumption – Physical activity has fallen. Urbanisation has increased. Refined carbohydrate consumption remains high. Ultra-processed foods have expanded. Portion sizes and eating patterns have changed. Indians also have a high biological susceptibility to diabetes at comparatively lower body weights.
Strongest scientific concern – Excess Energy from Oils
Every gram of fat provides approximately 9 calories.
Protein and carbohydrate provide about 4 calories per gram.
Edible Oil is therefore extremely calorie-dense.
One tablespoon (15 ml) of cooking oil can provide roughly 135 calories, depending on the amount measured. Add four tablespoons across cooking, frying, packaged foods and restaurant meals and the calorie contribution becomes substantial.
For Indians, this is particularly important because abdominal fat and metabolic problems can occur at lower body mass index levels than in many Western populations.
