Obesity In Australia

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Introduction: In recent years, the prevalence of obesity has increased quite significantly as compared to the past fifty years. This phenomenon is well known in countries with high intake of calories food and sedentary lifestyle. According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (2014) obesity can be defined as a medical condition in which excess body fat has accumulated to the extent that it may have an adverse effect on health which leads to lower life expectancy and increases health disorders. It can be measured by using BMI (Body Mass Index), a measurement used for classifying overweight (pre-obesity) and obesity by comparing height with weight. This essay will discuss the diverse negative impacts of obesity on individual, environment and the economical and health status of a country. Impacts of obesity:…show more content…
The Medical Journal of Australia claims that the obesity rates in Australia have doubled since 1990s. This intense growth has contributed to numerous health disorders and lifestyle diseases such as cancer, diabetes, coronary heart disease (CHD), stroke, high blood pressure, osteoarthritis and many other reproductive concerns. In fact, according to Lauren Lissner (2014), becoming obese or overweight is due to inappropriate food (energy) intake and not using that energy for daily life activities. In children the cause of obesity is due to genetics and potential birth problems (Health Culture and Society, 2014). In addition to the physical influences, obesity has several psychological ramifications which include depression, anxiety, dissatisfaction and the most essential self-esteem (Pi-Sunyer et al. 2011). Further to this, National Health Survey of Australia (2014) estimates that over 123,000 obese people die each year as compared to America which is 132,500 per

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