Galactus
Devourer of Worlds
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- Sep 1, 2000
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Australia has overtaken the United States as the fattest nation in the world.
The latest comprehensive obesity study has shown that 26 per cent of adult Australians - almost four million - are now obese, a million more than last calculated in 1999.
The notoriously super-sized Americans have a 25 per cent obesity rate.
"If there was a fat Olympics, we would be the gold medal nation," said Prof Simon Stewart, head of preventative cardiology at the Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute.
"Every American I have met visiting Australia in the last couple of months says 'Gee, you've overtaken us. You have more fat Australians than we have fat Americans', and they are right."
Another 5.4 million Australians are classed as overweight.
The crisis is expected to see almost 123,000 people die of weight-related heart disease over the next two decades.
"If we don't do something about this, we will have an MCG-sized crowd full of deaths over the next 20 years, directly as a result of our expanded waistlines," Prof Stewart said.
He will tell the Federal Government's obesity inquiry in Melbourne that seven out of 10 middle-aged men, and six out of 10 women, are overweight or obese.
The Baker Institute report, entitled Australia's Future Fat Bomb, says growing waistlines will cause an extra 700,000 heart-related hospital admissions in the next two decades, costing the health system $6 billion.
The obesity rate was determined by examining 14,000 adults at 100 centres across Australia last June.
Those with a body mass index of 30 or more are considered obese; those between 25 and 30 are overweight.
A person's BMI is calculated by dividing their weight by their height squared.
If the nine million overweight or obese Australians lost 5kg each, more than a third of those expected to die prematurely from heart conditions could be saved. If they lost 10kg, half would be saved.
Prof Stewart will ask for all levels of government to begin initiatives such as "healthy towns", where communities that band together to lose weight are rewarded with new sporting and other facilities.
The Baker Institute also wants obese people who are prepared to lose weight to get priority over other overweight people for elective surgery - an idea rejected by the Australian Medical Association.
The latest comprehensive obesity study has shown that 26 per cent of adult Australians - almost four million - are now obese, a million more than last calculated in 1999.
The notoriously super-sized Americans have a 25 per cent obesity rate.
"If there was a fat Olympics, we would be the gold medal nation," said Prof Simon Stewart, head of preventative cardiology at the Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute.
"Every American I have met visiting Australia in the last couple of months says 'Gee, you've overtaken us. You have more fat Australians than we have fat Americans', and they are right."
Another 5.4 million Australians are classed as overweight.
The crisis is expected to see almost 123,000 people die of weight-related heart disease over the next two decades.
"If we don't do something about this, we will have an MCG-sized crowd full of deaths over the next 20 years, directly as a result of our expanded waistlines," Prof Stewart said.
He will tell the Federal Government's obesity inquiry in Melbourne that seven out of 10 middle-aged men, and six out of 10 women, are overweight or obese.
The Baker Institute report, entitled Australia's Future Fat Bomb, says growing waistlines will cause an extra 700,000 heart-related hospital admissions in the next two decades, costing the health system $6 billion.
The obesity rate was determined by examining 14,000 adults at 100 centres across Australia last June.
Those with a body mass index of 30 or more are considered obese; those between 25 and 30 are overweight.
A person's BMI is calculated by dividing their weight by their height squared.
If the nine million overweight or obese Australians lost 5kg each, more than a third of those expected to die prematurely from heart conditions could be saved. If they lost 10kg, half would be saved.
Prof Stewart will ask for all levels of government to begin initiatives such as "healthy towns", where communities that band together to lose weight are rewarded with new sporting and other facilities.
The Baker Institute also wants obese people who are prepared to lose weight to get priority over other overweight people for elective surgery - an idea rejected by the Australian Medical Association.
. When Firefly/Serenity overtook Batman as my main obsession I wanted to have an avatar on the forums I visited regularly showing off my love for Firefly/Serenity but I also wanted to show off I was a Batman fan at the same time so I thought why not have both, the bat sign I use in the avvy you can't find anywhere since I made it myself from scratch in PS.
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