” More than two-thirds (69%) of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults were overweight or obese (29% overweight but not obese, and 40% obese). Indigenous men (69%) and women (70%) had similar rates of overweight and obesity (ABS 2014a).
One-third (32%) of Indigenous men and more than one-quarter (27%) of Indigenous women were overweight but not obese, while 36% of Indigenous men, and 43% of Indigenous women were obese ”
See NACCHO Aboriginal Health article
” There is clear and robust evidence that children’s exposure to unhealthy food advertising influences their food choices, influences their diets, and can contribute to poor diets, overweight and obesity.
Despite Australian children’s high rates of overweight and obesity, there are few controls on advertising practices targeting advertisements for unhealthy foods and beverages to children in Australia and much is left up to self-regulation by the food and beverage industry.
The Obesity Policy Coalition advocates for improved regulatory controls to reduce children’s exposure to this type of harmful advertising ”
“Sixty-three per cent of Australian adults and 27 per cent of our children are overweight or obese.
This is not surprising when you look at our environment – our kids are bombarded with advertising for junk food, high-sugar drinks are cheaper than water, and sugar and saturated fat are hiding in so-called ‘healthy’ foods. Making a healthy choice has never been more difficult.
The annual cost of overweight and obesity in Australia in 2011-12 was estimated to be $8.6 billion in direct and indirect costs such as GP services, hospital care, absenteeism and government subsidies.1 “
OPC Executive Manager Jane Martin
Download the report HERE tipping-the-scales
Read over 90 Aboriginal Health Obesity articles published over the past 6 years
The Senate is currently holding a Select Committee into the Obesity Epidemic in Australia, with a focus on childhood obesity. The Committee will be exploring the prevalence, causes, harm and economic burden of childhood obesity. They will also be exploring the effectiveness of existing policies and programs to address childhood obesity and role of the food industry in contributing to childhood obesity.
The Select Committee provides a valuable opportunity for us to show that there is an urgent need for action to prevent obesity, particularly among children. It also comes at a critical time when pressure is mounting on the Australian Government to act.
Submissions to the Inquiry are due by Friday 6 July 2018. Submissions can be made to Committee Secretary at obesitycommittee.sen@aph.gov.au. You can also find out more about the Committee here.
If you want to put in a submission please use one of the following:
Please use this opportunity to encourage others to make a submission on this important issue, the more submissions the better.
If you want to share this with your colleagues through your website or bulletins, here is some material to use.
Tipping the Scales report
In September 2017 more than 35 leading community, public health, medical and academic groups united for the first time to call for urgent Federal Government action to address Australia’s serious obesity problem.
In the ground-breaking report, Tipping the Scales, the agencies identify eight clear, practical, evidence-based actions the Australian Federal Government must take to reduce the enormous strain excess weight and poor diets are having on the nation’s physical and economic health.
Led by the Obesity Policy Coalition and Deakin University’s Global Obesity Centre (GLOBE), Tipping the Scales draws on national and international recommendations to highlight where action is required.
Tipping the Scales: Australian Obesity Prevention Consensus
This consensus document delivers a rigorous and evidence-based agenda to our Federal Government and establishes the key elements to include in a national strategy, as well as the basis for an ongoing dialogue, about the best ways to address the obesity epidemic.
Tipping the Scales: summary sheet
Summary document of the Tipping the Scales eight key points.