Obesity or Obese means an excess of body fat which is one of the most common health problems in the Western World.  Obesity results from an imbalance between energy consumed and expended.  Obesity is measured by body mass index, or BMI, which is calculated by dividing body weight in kilograms by the square of height in metres (kg/m²). 

BMI greater than 25kg/m² is Overweight. 

BMI greater than 30kg/m² is Obese. 

Obesity is defined as a Body Mass Index (BMI) greater than 30, and being Overweight as a BMI greater than 25.  BMI is weight in kilograms divided by height in metres squared.

BMI values apply only to adults aged 18 years and over and are based on studies of Caucasian populations.  The BMI measure does not differentiate between weight associated with muscle and weight associated with fat, and thus a given BMI value may not represent the same degree of fatness when comparing different populations.  The standard categories of BMI-defined overweight and obesity are therefore not applicable to children and adolescents and may not be appropriate for people of different cultural backgrounds, where equivalent levels of health risk are observed at a lower BMI (such as people from China or Japan) or at a higher BMI (such as people from Polynesia).  A healthy BMI for Indigenous Australians, for example, seems to be within a range of 17 to 22, metabolic complications developing at BMI values greater than 22.

Another measure used to assess overweight is waist circumference. This is a useful addition to BMI as abdominal fat mass can vary greatly within a narrow range of total body fat or BMI. Categories of abdominal overweight and obesity have been defined in the NHDD based on the risk of metabolic complications related to excess abdominal adiposity in adults3.

Obesity affects both adults and children and is increasing alarmingly.  Obesity can shorten life and increase risk of developing a number of conditions, such as high blood pressure, Type 2 Diabetes, cardiac disease, renal failure, orthopaedic injury, stroke, kidney disease, Arthritis and some cancers, as well as social marginalisation.

Causes of Obesity include genetics, physiological influences, glandular malfunctions, different metabolic fat burning rates, not maintaining a Healthy Diet, eating disorders incl Emotional Eating, Sedentary Lifestyle, sleep deprivation, low Self-esteem, reduced smoking, work style (operating computers, internet, cell phones, e-mail at work stations), belief that weight gain is part of adulthood and not able to be controlled, weight history, pregnancy and some drugs.

Section 3.III.(a) "Australian Social Trends 2007" ABS Report estimates that Obesity and its associated illnesses cost Australian society and governments a total of $21 billion in 2005. 

Alas, an Access Economics report released in March 2010 "The growing cost of obesity in 2008:  three years on" estimated the total cost of Obesity in 2008 to be $58.2 billion, comprising $50 billion in lost Wellbeing and $8 billion in financial costs (such as productivity costs, health system costs, carer costs and transfer costs) .

First National Preventive Health Research Programme  YELP Holistic First Business Plan    YELP Holistic First Business Plan Defined Terms   SWOT Analysis   Executive Summary   Deliverables And Costs   Snapshot Page To 10 Benchmark Techniques   Defined Terms for Five YELP Business Plans

Second National Preventive Health Research Programme

First BTAAP Business Plan      Bohemian Teenagers Show Choir Programme        Defined Terms BTSCP

Second BTAAP Business Plan    Bohemian Teenagers Symphony Orchestras Programme    Defined Terms - Bohemian Teenager Symphony Orchestra Programme

Third BTAAP Business Plan    Bohemian Teenager Ballet & Modern Dance Programme        Defined Terms BTB&MDCP

 

Cost of Obesity - 2008	$000
Type 2 diabetes	$8,251
Cardiovascular disease	$34,565
Osteoarthritis	5,662
Cancer	9,701
Total	58,179

Australia’s Future ‘Fat Bomb’ - June 2008