Overweight or obesity refers to excess body weight. It is a risk factor for many chronic conditions and is associated with higher rates of death and illness, particularly from cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, some musculoskeletal conditions and many types of cancers. At a population level, overweight or obesity is generally measured using Body Mass Index (BMI) (Cole et al. 2000; WHO 2000).
The root causes of overweight or obesity are varied and complex. Overweight or obesity mainly occurs when there is a sustained energy imbalance, where too much energy is consumed through food and drink, and not enough energy is expended, through activities like physical activity.
Other factors that also influence overweight and obesity include genetics (for example, metabolism), health inequalities (for example, area of remoteness and socioeconomic disadvantage), environmental factors (for example, availability of fast-food outlets) and commercial determinants (for example, media and advertising).
Rates of overweight or obesity have increased over time in Australia. Ongoing monitoring of these trends through collection and analysis of data is important for guiding the implementation of public initiatives to prevent, reduce and treat overweight or obesity. It must be acknowledged that to address overweight or obesity, it requires changes to systems, environments and commercial determinants that affect Australians’ opportunities to live healthier lives (Commonwealth of Australia 2022).
References
Cole T, Bellizzi M, Flegal K and Dietz W (2000) 'Establishing a standard definition for child overweight and obesity worldwide: international survey', British Medical Journal, 320:12401243, doi:10.1136/bmj.320.7244.1240.
Commonwealth of Australia (2022) The National Obesity Strategy 2022–2032, Australian Government, accessed 28 May 2024.
WHO (World Health Organization) (2000) Obesity: preventing and managing the global epidemic; Report of a WHO consultation, World Health Organization Technical Report Series 894, WHO, accessed 28 May 2024.
