BING! You want cheese with that?

Obesity – It’s a global epidemic.

There are more than 7 billion people in the world, and over 1 billion people are considered to be overweight. Within that 1 billion, 300 million are obese. That is astounding.

That means that 1 out of 7 people are overweight.

1 out of 7.

While 3 out of 70 people are obese; it’s absolutely appalling. And we, as the world, must change these staggering figures.

Obesity in ancient times were accepted as a cultural norm where it was a sign of wealth, fertility and power, however as time and society progressed it is now viewed that obesity is a sign of unhealthy ness, infertility along with many health defects.

The World Health Organisation defines obesity as a condition in which excess body fat has accumulated to an extent that health may be negatively affected. Obesity is considered to be one of the leading preventable causes of death, with increasing rates of childhood and adult obesity, health authorities are viewing obesity as one of the most serious health problems of the 21^st century.

Physical inactivity is a major contributor to obesity due to the increase of motorised transport, greater prevalence of labour saving technology as well as the decrease in desire for physical recreation. The number of fast-food outlets has allowed the obesity crisis to worsen due to the non-nutrition value of its food, with its high fat, high sugar, high salt contents, in addition to the inexpensive value and the sheer size of the meals itself. The fast food industry cannot bear the complete brunt of this epidemic, as it is not responsible for what its customers do to reduce the amount of energy supplied from their foods. Consequently this excess energy not being utilised due to inactivity, the energy is converted into fat and stored.

Many health problems arise from obesity which range from psychological to physical even to emotional. Obviously those who are obese are susceptible to heart diseases, such as stroke, irregular heartbeat, high blood pressure and cholesterol levels. Evidence has shown that obese people are prone to suffer from depression, erectile dysfunction, infertility, diabetes as well as increased chances of cancer and tumours.

Even here in Australia, we are being affected by this epidemic. Australia was recently given the non-coveted title of “world’s fattest nation”. Australians are known as the “shrimp on the barbie” people; do we honestly want to be collectively known as the “world’s fattest nation”?

Despite a relatively small population when compared to other developed western nations, Australia has a higher percentage of overweight people per capita. It is literally shocking that over 9 million people are classified as overweight or obese when Australia’s population is around the 21 million. That means on average 3 out of 7 Australians are either overweight or obese.

We, as Australians must rid our reputations as the “world’s fattest nation” and if we are to do this, we must join together and face this problem head on. Firstly, awareness must be raised. We must show everyone that obesity is not something to be proud.

To do this, we must endorse national campaigns which support healthy eating, regular exercise and less consumption of non-nutritional foods. Educating people on the implications of obesity and how to avoid it is an absolute necessity. In fact, it’s this obesity crisis is a national emergency.

The Rudd Government in conjunction with many health organisations have thought up many ideas which could assist in the fight against obesity. The Rudd Government has proposed a crackdown on the sales of junk foods, banning junk food advertisements, banning the sales of sugary drinks and foods in schools as well as a national initiative to encourage people to exercise particularly children.

Obesity prevention groups have applauded the Government’s actions but have stated more has to done. Groups have proposed radical ideas such as taxation on the sales of junk foods based upon the BMI of individual, subsidised gym memberships, restricting weight loss surgery to those who have shown that they have achieved some form of weight loss. One obesity prevention group has even suggested employing a “Biggest Loser” scheme on a national scale in which individuals compete for a cash payment in accordance to the amount of weight lost.

According to the WHO, since the 1980’s there has been a significant increase in the number of overweight children and adolescents. The amount of overweight children has doubled while overweight adolescents have tripled. This can be contributed to the technological advances such as computers, televisions and video games.

So maybe it's time we got off our lazy, fat arses and did something about it.