In Australia, 63.4 per cent of adults and 24 per cent of children are considered overweight or obese, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.
In 2017-18, two thirds (67.0%) of Australians 18 years and over were overweight or obese. Slightly more than a third (35.6%) were overweight and slightly less than a third were obese (31.3%). Just under one third (31.7%) were within the healthy weight range and one percent (1.3%) were underweight.
About 14 million Australians are living with overweight or obesity2 - that's 2 in every 3 adults, and 1 in 4 children.
Tasmania had the highest proportion of men overweight or obese (76.7%) while Australian Capital Territory had the lowest (70.5%).
Australia is ranked fifth for obesity, with wider waistlines than countries such as the United Kingdom, Canada and Ireland, but slimmer than Hungary, New Zealand, Mexico and the United States, which has an obesity rate of 38.2 per cent.
Tamworth was given the unflattering title of fattest town in Australia back in 2020, when the Australian Bureau of Statistics found that 61.2 per cent of residents were considered obese, compared to 31.3 per cent nationally.
The rise in obesity has been attributed to poor eating habits in the country closely related to the availability of fast food since the 1970s, sedentary lifestyles and a decrease in the labour workforce.
Sydney, NSW
Sydney narrowly edged out Melbourne for the highest percentage (81%) of residents who engage in exercise at least once a week. The top reasons Sydneysiders exercise are to feel better mentally, look better physically, and reduce stress.
Adelaide, tying with Gold Coast, has been named the healthiest cities in Australia in a new study by Mandoe Media, with Melbourne, Perth and Sydney rounding out the top 5.
Media Release - 16 November 2020. Australia has the second highest rate of obese men among countries in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), placing them just behind the United States, according to a report released today by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW).
The Australian Bureau of Statistics' National Health Survey from 2017–18 revealed that 67 per cent of Australian adults were overweight or obese (12.5 million people), an increase from 63.4 per cent since 2014-15. If the current trend continues, more than 18 million Australians will be overweight or obese by 2030.
Prevalence of obesity (BMI > or = 30) in Japanese adults (aged 20 years and over) was 3.8% in males and 3.2% in females (National Health and Nutrition Survey, 2010), being quite low compared with other countries listed in the Global Database on Body Mass Index (WHO).
Gary Sacks, from Deakin's Institute for Health Transformation and the Global Centre for Preventative Health and Nutrition, said less than 7 per cent of Australians consume a healthy diet.
In 2018–19, 71% (381,800) of Indigenous Australians aged 15 and over had a BMI in the overweight (25–29.9) or obese (>30.0) range (29% were overweight and 43% obese). A further 25% (133,500) had a BMI in the normal weight range (18.5–24.9) and 4% (20,800) were in the underweight category (<18.5).
Unhealthy diets and obesity are the leading contributors to poor health in Australia. Less than 7% of people in Australia consume a healthy diet consistent with the Australian Dietary Guidelines. Nearly 65% of Australian adults, and 25% of Australian children are overweight or obese.
Looking at kindness on a geographical level, each state and territory shone differently. The Index found the Northern Territory and Tasmania are the most welcoming states, Western Australia is the most encouraging, New South Wales is the most patient, and of course SA is the most considerate.
Australians living in rural areas have the highest wellbeing, marginally ahead of those in capital and regional cities. Queensland claimed the title of the country's happiest state.
People seeking a life in Australia have a good reason to put Canberra, the Australian capital city, on their priority list. A new survey by the University of Canberra's Health Research Institute has found that the city's residents are happier on average than people in other Australian cities.
Melbourne has been named the world's “friendliest” city, beating 22 other international favourites and arch-rival Sydney.
Darwin is Australia's least populated place. The city has a population of 148,564 and a density of 703 people/sq km.
Amazingly, it was the Gold Coast that shocked by taking out the top spot. “As the two most densely populated Australian cities… Melbourne and Sydney are simply too big to ooze the niche hipster cool, that the study… demands,” the study said.
The intergenerational cultural, socio-economic and political impact of Australia's colonisation have led to poor nutrition and health including the forced removal of Aboriginal people from traditional lands and a resultant inability to access traditional food sources as Aboriginal people became more urbanised, were ...
Is it possible to be overweight and healthy? Silvana Pannain, MD: Yes, you can be overweight and metabolically healthy. At the same time, we know that obesity is a disease that affects the body in many different ways. Thirteen types of cancer and 200 other health conditions are related to obesity.
The obesity epidemic started in the 1980s but poor monitoring systems meant the rise in obesity prevalence initially went undetected. In the 1990s, experts started advocating for government action; however, it was the rapid increase in media reports on obesity in the early 2000s which created the pressure for action.