A silent link between hunger and tuberculosis has come into sharper focus after a new global study estimated that nearly 7 lakh adults in India could have avoided TB in 2023 if undernutrition had been eliminated.
The study, published in medical journal The Lancet and titled “Global, regional, and national estimates of tuberculosis incidence averted by eliminating undernutrition in adults: a modelling study”, found that undernutrition remained one of the strongest drivers of TB disease worldwide.
Researchers estimated that eliminating all forms of undernutrition could have prevented nearly 2.3 million adult TB cases globally in 2023, accounting for almost 23.7% of total adult incidence.
For India, the findings were starker. The study estimated that removing undernutrition, defined as a body mass index below 18.5 kg/m2, could have prevented nearly 28.6% of adult TB disease episodes in 2023.
This translates to around 7.12 lakh avoidable cases, with estimates ranging between 4.6 lakh and 9.63 lakh.
The findings carry significance for Delhi, where tuberculosis continues to remain a major public health concern.
The latest Economic Survey has estimated that nearly 40% of residents carry latent TB bacteria. While latent infection does not mean active disease, doctors warn that weak immunity can activate dormant bacteria.
Health experts say the study reflects what clinicians have long observed in hospitals and TB clinics: poor nutrition weakens the immune system, making it harder for the body to fight TB bacteria.
They pointed out that overcrowding, pollution, diabetes, smoking, stress and delayed diagnosis continue to worsen Delhi’s TB burden. Pollution, in particular, keeps lungs inflamed and may make individuals more vulnerable to infection.
The disease, once largely associated with poorer communities, is now increasingly being diagnosed among middle-class and affluent populations too, especially in people with weakened immunity, chronic illnesses or prolonged exposure to polluted environments.
Government interventions are already attempting to bridge the nutrition gap linked to TB. These include the CSR-backed Nikshay Mitra “Food Basket” initiative, under which TB patients receive six months of nutritional support, and the Centre-led Energy Dense Nutrition Supplement programme for patients with low BMI.
