Overweight and Obesity in Australia in 2023 and future projections.

[GROTTO]

Got me thinking the other day when I was in the gym, just what is the current percentage of Australians over 18 that are overweight/obese?

I was pretty shocked when I checked online what the data is and its pretty startling to say the least.

I was curious in particular as to what the percentage of Bigfooty posters would honestly consider themselves to be in the overweight category in 2023, I probably think it would clear 70% comfortably, especially given the demographic, but happy to be proven wrong here.

In 2017–18, 2 in 3 (67%) Australians aged 18 and over were overweight or obese (36% were overweight but not obese, and 31% were obese). That’s around 12.5 million adults.

Men had higher rates of overweight and obesity than women (75% of men and 60% of women), and higher rates of obesity (33% of men and 30% of women).

Obesity is more common in older age groups – 16% of adults aged 18–24 were obese, compared with 41% of adults aged 65–74.

Overweight and obesity, Summary

Living with overweight or obesity can have major impacts on a person@s physical and mental health and wellbeing. It is the second leading risk factor for ill-health and premature mortality in...

www.aihw.gov.au

Probably what is even more startling is that by 2030, the overweight projection is 18 million Australians will be in this category.

https://www.health.gov.au/ministers...besity-strategy-launched-on-world-obesity-day

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.

Australian women fared better, ranking eighth in terms of obesity, just behind New Zealand and Hungary.

Media releases | Heart Foundation

Explore the Heart Foundation's media releases to keep up with our world-leading heart health research, innovative prevention and support programs, and impactful awareness campaigns.

www.heartfoundation.org.au

 

[GROTTO]

What is considered to be overweight?

BMI is calculated using your weight and height (your weight divided by your height squared). Along with several other factors, like your blood pressure and cholesterol, BMI can help estimate your risk of a heart attack or stroke.

It’s important to remember that BMI is not the most reliable measure of whether your weight is in a healthy range for your height. It’s not a good overall indicator of how healthy you are, and doesn’t take into account important factors like age, gender and body composition (fat, muscle and bone).

For the following groups of people, BMI is not an accurate measure:

• Some ethnic groups including Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Peoples, and people of Asian/South Asian descent.
• Women who are pregnant.
• People 19 years of age or younger.
• Athletes or people who have a lot of muscle.
• People with a condition that affects the amount of fluid in their body (for example, heart failure).

For most adults:

• A BMI between 18.5 and 24.9 is considered healthy.
• A BMI between 25 and 29.9 is considered overweight.
• A BMI of 30 or higher is considered obesity.

Obesity

Obesity is a term used to describe being overweight. Obesity can lead to symptoms that affect your life. Learn about BMI, prevention and treatment options.

www.healthdirect.gov.au

BMI calculator

Body mass index, or BMI, gives an indication of your body size. Along with several other factors, like your blood pressure and cholesterol, BMI can help estimate your risk of a heart attack or stroke.

www.heartfoundation.org.au

Here is an online BMI calculator:

BMI-calculator

 

[GROTTO]

 

[DickieKnee]

Just scraped in.

 

[GROTTO]

Just scraped in.
View attachment 1581541

Same, however I am at the "upper end" of the healthy weight scale and as much as I pretend to kid myself its all muscle, I would still like and need to drop a few more kilo's.

The healthy weight range is roughly around 15kgs, so ideally you would want to be in the middle part.

 

[PoppedCorn]

24.5
Scraped in

Last Monday I would've been just sitting in the over weight category

Been sick, ate bugger all and voila

 

[Caesar]

My BMI tends to hover around 24. Generally speaking it is hard work for me to stay in a healthy weight range. I need to maintain a light daily exercise regimen and a reasonably healthy home-cooked diet to avoid putting on weight.

Doesn't sound like much but it's a decent commitment. Being in my 30s and working a sedentary job, I probably dedicate 2hrs/day+ specifically to being healthy (which is things like boosting my step count, additional exercise-related travel/showers/washing, extra supermarket trips, extra food prep time). This is all stuff I didn't have to do in my early 20s when my lifestyle and metabolism kept the weight off naturally.

I am not at all surprised that the majority of Australians are overweight - if I was a single dad or something, I have no idea how I'd find the time to stay fit.

The healthy weight range is roughly around 15kgs, so ideally you would want to be in the middle part.

BMI shouldn't be interpreted like this

the reason the range is so large is to allow for the fact that it is a pretty rough measure that fluctuates significantly depending on body type

e.g. different age cohorts and ethnic groups have different BMIs where they start to experience increased health risks

BMI category is really just a flag as to whether you have a problem, it's definitely not something that should be used to dial in to a 'perfect' weight

 

[Off The Couch]

I recently listened to a podcast on the history of BMI

In a nutshell - it’s an ineffective measurement tool

 

[raskolnikov]

BMI is not really an accurate measure. A lot of athletes are obese according to their BMI.

 

[Mofra]

BMI is not really an accurate measure. A lot of athletes are obese according to their BMI.

Yep. I'm just sneaking into the low part of the overweight category but I am a regular at the gym plus run and cycle weekly - I'd consider myself fitter then at least 95% of people. Pretty much every NRL player and a lot of AFL players are also in the overweight category.

BMI is ok for population studies but terrible as an individual metric.

 

[Caesar]

I recently listened to a podcast on the history of BMI

In a nutshell - it’s rubbish

BMI is not really an accurate measure. A lot of athletes are obese according to their BMI.

nothing in human health is exact, everything is a spectrum and individuals vary wildly

BMI is a decent broad indicator for most people. e.g. the weight where most average people are healthiest will fall somewhere within the normal BMI range.

Personally I do a few things to monitor myself:

1. I use a basket of metrics - BMI, waistline circumference, estimated body fat, blood pressure, blood sugar, cholesterol
2. I only worry about numbers when I am tracking a trend - e.g. if my cholesterol sucks I will watch the number to make sure it is going down. Otherwise:
3. I treat them as traffic lights - i.e. are they obviously good, obviously bad or somewhere in the middle
4. I look at them collectively rather than individually - e.g. if my BMI is a bit iffy but everything else looks great I am not going to sweat about a couple of kilos

tldr: nothing wrong with BMI unless you’re only looking at BMI

 

[Teagueeee15]

BMI is not really an accurate measure. A lot of athletes are obese according to their BMI.

Agreed - Anthony Koutafides at his peak was around 100kg and 190cm tall, which makes him overweight according to BMI.

 

[perthblue]

"Athletes would be fat according to BMI" says Barry, the 130kg neckbeard who hasn't done anything physically exerting since high school.

We've become so conditioned to seeing fat people that those weight ranges in the 'normal' category look absurd to us.

BMI isn't the be-all and end-all, but it's a pretty good indicator for the vast majority of people.
Get some tape measure and use it in conjunction with body measurements for a good indicator of how you are physically.

 

[burge13]

Nothing is as accurate for telling you whether you're a fat campaigner as standing shirtless in front of a mirror.

No one has ever done that thinking "god im fat" then checked their BMI or stood on a scale and changed their mind...

 

[PoppedCorn]

 

[DickieKnee]

"Athletes would be fat according to BMI" says Barry, the 130kg neckbeard who hasn't done anything physically exerting since high school.

We've become so conditioned to seeing fat people that those weight ranges in the 'normal' category look absurd to us.

BMI isn't the be-all and end-all, but it's a pretty good indicator for the vast majority of people.
Get some tape measure and use it in conjunction with body measurements for a good indicator of how you are physically.

I'm at the top end of healthy BMI but need to lose about 3kg or so of belly fat, supposedly the unhealthiest fat as it sits around your organs. I think it's just a rough indicator, if you are totally honest with yourself you would know you are a healthy weight or not without even weighing yourself.

 

[Caesar]

Nothing is as accurate for telling you whether you're a fat campaigner as standing shirtless in front of a mirror.

this message brought to you by anorexia

 

[GROTTO]

Yep. I'm just sneaking into the low part of the overweight category but I am a regular at the gym plus run and cycle weekly - I'd consider myself fitter then at least 95% of people. Pretty much every NRL player and a lot of AFL players are also in the overweight category.

BMI is ok for population studies but terrible as an individual metric.

BMI for the most part is accurate, of course there are exceptions which I outlined above. I can even appreciate if a person's BMI is borderline is one thing, but when your BMI is clears 27, odds are you are overweight. Its funny how everyone starts to envision themselves as athletic or the exception to the BMI rule.

I know you train as we often discuss exercise, so this comment is clearly not aimed at you or others that clearly fall into the exemption category, but for the vast majority of people on here its correct. To think otherwise, they are just fooling themselves.

 

[GROTTO]

I'm at the top end of healthy BMI but need to lose about 3kg or so of belly fat, supposedly the unhealthiest fat as it sits around your organs. I think it's just a rough indicator, if you are totally honest with yourself you would know you are a healthy weight or not without even weighing yourself.

100% this comment.

Correct, that belly fat, ie visceral fat around your organs is the most concerning issue.

I can appreciate even some at the lower end of the overweight category, there are borderline exemptions that need to be considered.

I call out BS for almost 95% of people who sit in the obese category or high end of the overweight category and claim that BMI does not apply to them.

 

[GROTTO]

"Athletes would be fat according to BMI" says Barry, the 130kg neckbeard who hasn't done anything physically exerting since high school.

We've become so conditioned to seeing fat people that those weight ranges in the 'normal' category look absurd to us.

BMI isn't the be-all and end-all, but it's a pretty good indicator for the vast majority of people.
Get some tape measure and use it in conjunction with body measurements for a good indicator of how you are physically.

Correct.

Go to any AFL game, I would comfortably say that 70% of the crowd are in the overweight category, especially more so north of age of 40+.

As you mentioned, a lot of people dont view themselves as overweight, when in reality they really are.

 

[Nuggs Bunny]

The disparity will get worse over time IMO - if you compare how we live and work to 50 years ago there are much fewer professions where one could burn 1000 calories a day in movement compared to the service-dominated professions we have now. Urban sprawl has meant we are far more reliant on cars also.

 

[dumb]

26.2

No surprises there, 180cm, ~85kg.

Have lost 6kg or so in the last 3 months, so working on that. Sustainably rather than any watercress diet.

Pro-tip: weigh yourself when you get up in the morning after taking a s**t.

 

[La Dispute]

Body positivity has a lot to answer for here.

There’s a real schizophrenia about body shaming, while being overweight directly leads to preventable diseases/illness like cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

I get some people have genuine mental issues that are linked to them being fat but they need to step on the treadmill from time to time.

 

[DickieKnee]

being overweight directly leads to preventable diseases/illness like cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

It's going to be a huge burden on the health system and only going to get worse with modern living habits. The US life expectancy is going backwards for the first time since WW2 and that was before COVID. 37% of US adults are obese.

 

[Off The Couch]

BMI can lull you into a false sense of security

You could have a person with an excellent BMI but have heart disease, high cholesterol, fatty liver etc and never be tested because they and their Doctor don’t see the need because they are “healthy”

Person B could be considered obese but all other markers be perfect and their “fault” then becomes more “visual” than health related

The whole picture needs to be considered rather than one set metric