Regional Australians bearing the brunt of the obesity crisis

Australians living in regional communities are disproportionately affected by the country’s obesity epidemic, highlighting a growing health and economic gap between the city and country.

A new report released by the McKell Institute and the Menzies Research Centre, shows two in three Australian adults are now overweight or obese, while one in four children aged 5 to 17 falls into the same category.

Regional communities are particularly exposed to the impacts of rising obesity rates due to differences in healthcare access, food availability and socioeconomic conditions.

The report warns that the economic cost of obesity will hit $87.7 billion a year by 2032 and $228 billion annually by 2060, with two-thirds of the costs linked to lost productivity, including absenteeism, reduced workplace performance and premature death.

MRC Executive Director David Hughes spoke to 2SER to discuss the report’s findings.