Social Determinants Of Obesity In Australia

Farburn et al (2002) suggests that “the prevalence of obesity and its physiological and psychological complications is increasing among children and adults. These findings emphasize the need for effective prevention and treatment programs. Public health policies and strategies are implemented to meet targets to tackle health issues and socioeconomic problems (Lydia Balsdon, 2009). The House of Commons Health Select Committee (HSC 2004) foreseen the rise in health-care costs related to obesityas the figures are predicted to double by 2050, the estimated cost in 2002 was around £3340-3724 million. Obesity usually relates to limitations in mobility, which results in challenges with daily activities and affecting the quality of life and preventing individuals from finding employability. Health and psychological complications from obesity and related diseases impact the health and social care cost as individuals have high sickness and absence levels from work, which results in low productivity and enforces costs on industries.(McCormick et al, 2007). The government addresses the national strategies in tackling and reducing the obesity figures in the UK. (DH, 2005b). The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (2013) declared that from April 2013, the local government took on a widespread concern for public health within

Though many are suffering from malnutrition and anorexia, Australia is becoming a major part of an epidemic that is impacting mass number of people globally. Obesity. In every three Australians, 2 will be obese. Obesity, though preventable, is very damaging to the society due to the health aspects and societal impacts. The shocking figures are only expected to increase, unless there are immediate changes applied to the current diet and lifestyle habits. Furthermore, as a chain affect, the risk of developing other diseases increases drastically.

2001) Recognised by the World Health Organisation, the dramatic worldwide increase in obesity has been named as ‘a global epidemic’. Although obesity occurs in all populations groups in Australia, Indigenous Australians and people from low socio-economic backgrounds are most prone to obesity. The issue of obesity and the increasing levels of

Obesity is the 21st centuries plaque. It is a disease spreading at a rapid rate, taking over our society; affecting us from the grass roots up. Obesity, defined as excess fat/weight causing health issues is a multifactorial issue that needs to be addresses. There are too many consequences presented by the disease, both physical and mental to allow it the continual power to destroy the lives of many, too many Australians. The alarming rate at which this disease is spreading must become a topic of conversation for our whole society. Change needs to be seen at every level.

Obesity is best referred to as the "red alert health zone". The thing that makes obesity that dangerous is the fact that today's society does not view obesity as a serious threat. It is important to understand the fact that obesity is not just being fat or having a BMI i.e. Body Mass Index greater than that of an overweight person. Obesity is a serious problem that can fatally damage the physical as well as mental health of a person. While all of us understand how obesity can affect the physical health, a few of us know how mental health is affected due to obesity. A person suffering from obesity is termed as obese. Such a person is usually a victim of mockery and insult due to his appearance. No matter how educated we are we as a society have failed to keep in account the fact that obese people are also humans and deserve to be treated normally.

Obesity can be defined as being 20% or more over the ideal body weight for your age and height. It is a chronic disease that can lead to a number of different illnesses and other diseases . These potentially deadly illnesses include diabetes, high blood pressure, coronary artery disease, coronary vascular disease, heart attack, stroke, sleep apnoea and even cancer. Obesity is becoming more common in Australia as we speak with 10% more adults being overweight or obese in Australia than in 1995. According to recent statistics 63% of adults and 1 in 4 Australian children are overweight or obese.

Obesity is rapidly becoming a major health issue throughout NSW. In Australia 63.4% percent of people were cut off for obesity making that more than half the population making obesity a major threat to individual’s health’s. The NSW health obesity strategy is a government organisation aiming to help individuals live healthier lifestyles by providing one on one help and assistance with their specific needs. The strategy also provides tailored programs for different groups of individuals who may have higher or lower levels or health due to their social situation, economic status e.g. (ATSI) this initiative was put into place and aims to over time, decrease the statistics of chronic illness related to obesity and its long-term health effects,

Increasing rates of childhood obesity is a current and significant health issue in Australia. In Australia alone the obesity in children have doubled in recent years with a quarter of children considered overweight or obese. Levels of childhood obesity have been rising each year and for numerous reasons some which include the fact that children have been eating food which are high in sugars and fats and spending less time on physical activity. Studies have shown that when children become overweight they are more likely to become and stay obese while moving into adulthood, children also have an increased risk of developing both short and long term associated health conditions. Some associated health conditions include cardiovascular diseases,

Obesity is a public health issue that has devastatingly developed into a global epidemic. According to the World Health Organization, the prevalence of overweight and obesity is dramatically increasing worldwide at an appalling and intimidating rate with more than 1.9 billion adults aged18 years and older being overweight in 2014. Out of these 1.9 billion adults being overweight, 600 million were classified obese. While the issue regarding overweight and obesity are prevalent in all countries, the National Health and Medical Research Council stated that Australia’s obesity levels have been developing faster than any countries in the world over the past thirty years. Although obesity may have been primarily considered as a personal concern three decades ago; it is overwhelmingly a societal concern today in Australia. The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare have measured that in 2011 and 2012, around 63% of Australian adults had the characteristics of being overweight and corpulence. That is over a quarter of the adult population in Australia being obese.

Much has been written to explain the medical aspect of obesity but little attention has been paid to understanding the sociological aspect of the epidemic. This research attempts to understand the sociological aspect of obesity by examining the socio-cultural, gender, and psycho-social effects and includes the different perceptions of the epidemic as well as what is deemed acceptable in the society we live in.

There are over 1.5 million Australians with diabetes. The groups most at risk are people aged over 45 years old, overweight people, people with family history, females with the history of gestational diabetes, people who consume a diet high in sugar, and ATSI people.

Overweight and obesity is an alarming situation, it threatens the health and employment of the people in Australia and around the world. For working people it is the biggest threat to cause unemployment and inefficient work. Obesity and overweight have seriously affected and economic development of many national educations as it affects young labour force and ability to do the job of the people. Particularly Australia, obese people have jobs accounted for 60% and this figure may rise, while obese people unemployed (44%). But in fact that person aged 18-24 unemployed due to obesity and overweight accounted for 3%. Moreover, the person who worked full-time at risk of obesity than those who work part-time. That shows chalk causes obesity is due

In 2008, obesity alone cost Australia 58.2 billion dollars (Obesity Australia, 2014). The majority of the cost of obesity comes from the ever growing list of health-related problems including diabetes, heart disease and some cancers, just to name a few. There are also numerous indirect costs of obesity, which include but are not limited to; the value of lost work and the inflated insurance prices (Withrow D & Alter D, 2011). The long list of physical problems that arise from obesity include; insulin resistance, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, stroke, cancers, type 2 diabetes, obstructive sleep apnoea, osteoarthritis, cognitive impairment and depression (Core.monash.org, 2010). Recently, Cancer Council Australia CEO, Professor Ian Olver stated: “Unchecked, obesity will ultimately surpass tobacco as the major cancer killer in Australia” (Cancercouncil.org.au). The Cancer Council estimated that obese Australians are 23% more likely to fie from cancer, that those within the healthy weight range (Cancercouncil.org.au, 2011). Not only are there medical issues involved with obesity but a raft of adverse social and emotional effects.

This essay discusses how social constructions have an effect on obesity and what combination of causes and contributing factors it includes can lead to obesity. `Obesity is the term used to describe someone who is overweight and unhealthy. Obesity shortens life by an average of 10 years. It is very common in the UK and results from a study back in 2014 showed that a whopping 65.3% of men and 58.1% of women are obese here. (UniversityOfBirmingham,2016) Being over weight is generally associated with being lazy and unpleasant. There are a lot of media groups that have influenced our society’s perception on obesity and many factors that lead to the disease. Obesity can be life threatening and can be the start of lethal conditions such as diabetes,

Statistical information confirms: obesity and overweight have already turned into an issue of national concern. In 2002, “a National Survey conducted by American Sports Data revealed that 61% of adults in the U.S. felt that they were overweight, 19% admitting that they were ‘considerably’ overweight” (American Sports Data). The major causes of obesity, overweight, and similar nutritional problems included genetics, population trends, hurried lifestyles, high-carbohydrate diets, less demanding workplaces, smoking cessation, and social class aspects (American Sports Data). That hurried lifestyles and a less demanding workplace contribute in the development of obesity trends is clear. But even more importantly, because the number of those who are overweight or obese exceeds one half of the American population, the government must control our diets. The information about the costs of obesity and related diseases is even more compelling.