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A diet high in sodium contributes to a significant proportion of Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) due to cardiovascular diseases. This paper describes the awareness, behaviour and determinants related to dietary salt intake in an adult population of 18–69 years that were assessed as part of the National NCD Monitoring Survey (NNMS) in India. A sub-sample of 3000 adults selected through simple random sampling from 150 nationally representative Primary Sampling Units (PSUs) was included. Data regarding awareness and behaviour related to dietary salt intake were collected. Urinary sodium excretion in spot urine samples was estimated and used to calculate dietary salt intake. The dietary salt intake's sociodemographic, behavioural and metabolic determinants were also analysed. Less than one-third of the adults of both genders in all age groups in rural and urban areas were aware that daily high salt intake could affect health. The estimated mean daily salt intake was 8.0 g (8.9 g/day for men and 7.1 g/day for women). The salt intake was significantly higher in men [Adjusted OR = 17.66 (5.24–59.46)], rural areas [Adjusted OR = 6.14 (1.83–20.60)], overweight and obese respondents [Adjusted OR = 17.62 (3.17–98.07)]. The perception of the harmful effects of high salt intake and practices to limit salt intake was low in the study population. The mean daily salt intake was higher than the WHO recommendation of up to 5 g daily. The mean dietary salt intake is high in the Indian population, which calls for planning and implementing control of dietary salt consumption measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diabetes is a growing epidemic and a major threat to most of the households in India. Yet, there is little evidence on the extent of awareness, treatment, and control (ATC) among adults in the country. In this study, we estimate the prevalence and ATC of diabetes among adults across various sociodemographic groups and states of India. We used data on 2,078,315 individuals aged 15 years and over from the recent fifth round, the most recent one, of the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5), 2019–2021, that was carried out across all the states of India. Diabetic individuals were identified as those who had random blood glucose above 140 mg/dL or were taking diabetes medication or has doctor-diagnosed diabetes. Diabetic individuals who reported diagnosis were labelled as aware, those who reported taking medication for controlling blood glucose levels were labelled as treated and those whose blood glucose levels were < 140 mg/dL were labelled as controlled. The estimates of prevalence of diabetes, and ATC were age-sex adjusted and disaggregated by household wealth quintile, education, age, sex, urban–rural residence, caste, religion, marital status, household size, and state. Concentration index was used to quantify socioeconomic inequalities and multivariable logistic regression was used to estimate the adjusted differences in those outcomes. We estimated diabetes prevalence to be 16.1% (15.9–16.1%). Among those with diabetes, 27.5% (27.1–27.9%) were aware, 21.5% (21.1–21.7%) were taking treatment and 7% (6.8–7.1%) had their diabetes under control. Across the states of India, the adjusted rates of awareness varied from 14.4% (12.1–16.8%) to 54.4% (40.3–68.4%), of treatment from 9.3% (7.5–11.1%) to 41.2% (39.9–42.6%), and of control from 2.7% (1.6–3.7%) to 11.9% (9.7–14.0%). The age-sex adjusted rates were lower (p < 0.001) among the poorer and less educated individuals as well as among males, residents of rural areas, and those from the socially backward groups Among individuals with diabetes, the richest fifth were respectively 12.4 percentage points (pp) (11.3–13.4; p < 0.001), 10.5 pp (9.7–11.4; p < 0.001), and 2.3 pp (1.6–3.0; p < 0.001) more likely to be aware, getting treated, and having diabetes under control, than the poorest fifth. The concentration indices of ATC were 0.089 (0.085–0.092), 0.083 (0.079–0.085) and 0.017 (0.015–0.018) respectively. Overall, the ATC of diabetes is low in India. It is especially low the poorer and the less educated individuals. Targeted interventions and management can reduce the diabetes burden in India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]