Health in numbers

Figures from India's largest health studies, drawn as simple charts. Every source is linked, and every chart can be read as a table.

Lifestyle conditions Liver Anaemia The shift Traditional medicine

Lifestyle conditions

One in three Indian adults lives with high blood pressure

101 million Indians living with diabetes

The ICMR-INDIAB study estimated that 101 million Indians live with diabetes and another 136 million with prediabetes, while 315 million have high blood pressure. Abdominal obesity, a waist that is too wide for height, was the most common finding of all. Most of these conditions develop silently for years, which is why regular checks matter more than symptoms.

The largest national study of metabolic health in India measured more than a hundred thousand adults across every state.

Abdominal obesity39.5%

High blood pressure35.5%

Generalised obesity28.6%

Prediabetes15.3%

Diabetes11.4%

View the data as a table

Group	Share of adults
Abdominal obesity	39.5%
High blood pressure	35.5%
Generalised obesity	28.6%
Prediabetes	15.3%
Diabetes	11.4%

Source: Anjana RM et al. ICMR-INDIAB. The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology, 2023
Source last verified 8 October 2026 · Download the data (CSV)

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Liver

Fatty liver affects roughly one in three Indians

38.6% of Indian adults have fatty liver

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is closely tied to weight, waist size and blood sugar. In people with risk factors such as diabetes or obesity, more than half were affected. Because fatty liver rarely causes symptoms in its early stages, it is often found by chance on an ultrasound.

A meta-analysis of fifty Indian studies found non-alcoholic fatty liver disease to be common in adults and children alike.

People with risk factors52.8%

All adults38.6%

Children35.4%

People without risk factors28.1%

View the data as a table

Group	Pooled prevalence
People with risk factors	52.8%
All adults	38.6%
Children	35.4%
People without risk factors	28.1%

Source: Shalimar et al. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hepatology, 2022
Source last verified 8 October 2026 · Download the data (CSV)

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Anaemia

Anaemia rose in every group between the last two national surveys

57% of Indian women are anaemic

Two in three young children and more than half of women in India are anaemic, most often because of iron deficiency. Anaemia causes tiredness, breathlessness and poor concentration, and in pregnancy it affects both mother and baby. It is also among the most preventable conditions, through diet, supplementation and treating its causes.

The National Family Health Survey compares 2015 to 2016 with 2019 to 2021.

NFHS-4 (2015-16) NFHS-5 (2019-21)

Children aged 6 to 59 months58.6% to 67.1%

Women aged 15 to 1954.1% to 59.1%

All women aged 15 to 4953.1% to 57%

Pregnant women50.4% to 52.2%

Men aged 15 to 4922.7% to 25%

View the data as a table

Group	NFHS-4 (2015-16)	NFHS-5 (2019-21)
Children aged 6 to 59 months	58.6%	67.1%
Women aged 15 to 19	54.1%	59.1%
All women aged 15 to 49	53.1%	57%
Pregnant women	50.4%	52.2%
Men aged 15 to 49	22.7%	25%

Source: National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5), India Fact Sheet. IIPS and Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, 2021
Source last verified 8 October 2026 · Download the data (CSV)

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The shift

Two in three deaths in India are now caused by noncommunicable diseases

66 in 100 deaths are from noncommunicable diseases

This is the health transition: as infections are controlled, long-term conditions shaped by diet, activity, tobacco, alcohol and air quality take their place. Many of these conditions can be prevented or delayed, which is why everyday habits and early screening matter so much.

Heart disease, cancers, chronic lung disease and diabetes have overtaken infections as India's leading causes of death.

Each dot is one in a hundred.

66% · Noncommunicable diseases

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Group	Noncommunicable diseases
Noncommunicable diseases	66%

Source: World Health Organization. Invisible numbers: the true extent of noncommunicable diseases, 2022
Source last verified 8 October 2026 · Download the data (CSV)

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Traditional medicine

Nearly nine in ten WHO member states acknowledge the use of traditional medicine

88% of WHO member states acknowledge its use

From Ayurveda and yoga to acupuncture and herbal medicine, traditional systems remain part of everyday care worldwide. The WHO Global Centre for Traditional Medicine, established in Jamnagar, Gujarat, works to build the evidence base for these practices.

In the World Health Organization's 2019 global report, 170 member states, 88 per cent, acknowledged the use of traditional and complementary medicine.

Each dot is one in a hundred.

170 member states · Member states acknowledging use

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Group	Member states reporting use
Member states acknowledging use	170 member states

Source: World Health Organization. WHO global report on traditional and complementary medicine 2019.
Source last verified 8 October 2026 · Download the data (CSV)

Figures are reproduced from the published sources cited beneath each chart, which describe their own methods and limitations. Population figures describe groups, not individuals. If any figure here concerns you, the most useful next step is a conversation with your doctor.

Did this answer your question?

One in three Indian adults lives with high blood pressure

Fatty liver affects roughly one in three Indians

Anaemia rose in every group between the last two national surveys

Two in three deaths in India are now caused by noncommunicable diseases

Nearly nine in ten WHO member states acknowledge the use of traditional medicine

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