Overview

On 7 August 2026, the inaugural session of the national symposium "Lifestyle & Diet: Nutrition, Wellness and Clinical Practice" was held at AIIMS New Delhi, organized by the Department of Physiology in association with the Food Future Foundation (FFF) and under the aegis of the Coalition for Food Systems Transformation in India (CoFTI). Dr. M. Srinivas, Member of NITI Aayog, opened the event by calling for nutrition, diet and lifestyle to become core clinical competencies and to be integrated into undergraduate medical education, emphasizing the need for preventive healthcare.

Key Participants

The symposium gathered senior clinicians, nutrition scientists, medical educators, regulators and policymakers, including:

  • Dr. Nikhil Tandon, Director, AIIMS New Delhi
  • Dr. Govind Makharia, Associate Dean (Research), AIIMS New Delhi
  • Mr. Pawan Agarwal, Founder and CEO of Food Future Foundation and former CEO of FSSAI
  • Dr. Ratna Sharma, Head, Department of Physiology, AIIMS
  • Dr. Raj Kumar Yadav, Professor of Physiology and lead editor of the textbook
  • Additional faculty from AIIMS, ICMR‑NIN, IIT Guwahati, University of Mysore, University of Delhi and Lady Irwin College.

Textbook Launch

A central highlight was the release of the textbook "Nutrition, Diet & Lifestyle: Learning and Teaching Diet, Food, Nutrition & Lifestyle in Clinical Practice". The volume was edited by Dr. Raj Kumar Yadav, Dr. Alexander Thomas and Mr. Pawan Agarwal, with contributions from senior nutritionist Parisksha Rao and a team of experts. In the foreword, Dr. Srinivas noted that scientific evidence now leaves little doubt that food, nutrition and lifestyle are powerful health determinants, yet they receive far less attention in undergraduate medical curricula. The book integrates physiology, nutrition and lifestyle medicine to equip future physicians with the knowledge to link everyday food choices to health outcomes.

Scientific Sessions

The programme featured presentations on:

  • Paediatric dietary therapy for epilepsy, autism, obesity and metabolic dysfunction (Prof Sheffali Gulati, Prof Vandana Jain)
  • Skeletal muscle physiology and metabolic health (Prof Naval K Vikram)
  • High‑fat diet, obesity and neuroinflammation research (Dr Ritesh Netam)
  • Healthier food reformulation and the role of monosodium glutamate (MSG) in reducing sodium without compromising taste, with international perspectives from Dr Miro Smriga, Chairman of the International Glutamate Technical Committee, and a systematic review presented by Dr Trina Sengupta confirming MSG safety for the general population, including infants, pregnant and lactating women.

Consensus and Outlook

The symposium concluded with a broad consensus that strengthening nutrition and lifestyle medicine within medical education is essential for building a more preventive, patient‑centred and wellness‑oriented healthcare system in India. Participants pledged to collaborate on practical recommendations and policy approaches to bridge the gap between nutrition science and clinical practice.