‘Obesity by address’: The shocking ways your city shapes your waistline

Produced by: Manoj Kumar

Concrete Calories

Fast food isn’t just a treat—it’s a lifestyle. Urban India’s endless delivery apps and street eats saturate cities with hyper-palatable, calorie-packed temptations on every corner.

Car-Packed Lives

Sidewalks are afterthoughts. With cities built for cars, not people, the simple act of walking has become a rare luxury. Movement is sacrificed to speed and smog.

Vanishing Greens

Where kids once played cricket, malls and towers now stand. Cities like Bengaluru and Delhi rank among the lowest in public park access, stripping away active spaces.

Digital Drift

Screens rule. In metros, kids scroll more than they sprint, and adults binge more than they move. City life fosters digital immersion and physical decline.

Income Paradox

Wealth in cities buys convenience—cars, screens, processed meals. But with rising affluence comes rising waistlines. Obesity is no longer a disease of deprivation, but of abundance.

Street Food Zones

Urban poor face a cruel choice: cheap but unhealthy. Fresh produce is scarce in low-income areas, but deep-fried snacks? Everywhere. Food deserts become fat traps.

Commute Culture

Three-hour daily commutes steal time from cooking and movement. Between traffic and tech jobs, exhaustion fuels quick fixes—packaged meals and sedentary evenings.

Pollution Paralysis

Bad air isn’t just a lung issue. AIIMS studies show smog raises cortisol, reduces physical activity, and even promotes fat storage—turning fresh air into a health hazard.

Cultural Drift

Chapati and sabzi give way to burgers and biryani. Cities accelerate a shift from whole foods to Western-style eating—calorie-dense, nutrient-poor, and dangerously addictive.