Obesity In Australia

Over the course of the last 50 years in the UK the government (England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland) have made a great effort in order to improve the overall health of the general population in the UK. This has been achieved through the use of making the general population more aware of the dangers to their health and what they are along with they can do in order to improve it, thereby making better informed decisions in regards to their health when it comes to things such as diet, road safety (driving), exercise, smoking and education.

In the beginning of his article called “Is Junk Food Really Cheaper?” author Mark Bittman does a spectacular job capturing the reader almost instantly just within the first paragraph. He brazenly begins his argument to express his thoughts indirectly, but directly of why the “overweight” and “low income” population cannot afford, access, or choose healthy food options.

“During the past two decades, the prevalence of obesity in children has risen greatly worldwide. Obesity in childhood causes a wide range of serious complications, and increases the risk of premature illness and death later in life, raising public-health concerns.” (Ebbeling, Pawlak & Ludwig, 2002 p.471) Currently in the Australian community and schools there is an obesity epidemic in young people with many children doing less and less physical activity then advised. “In 2007-08 the National health survey, run by the Australian Government indicated that 24.9% of children aged 5-17 years old were either overweight or obese” (Healthy Active, 2009). These figures show that children are not being properly educated about healthy

Lauri Monroe SOC 304 2/1/16 First Essay The Stigma of Race and Class When I think about riding the bus, my thoughts are; how long it will take me to get there?

Since this data was recorded during the early and late morning, cars are supposedly more likely to be seen, as residents were heading to work. Furthermore both Roads are commonly used by residents of Brisbane as they connect to Gateway Motorway, which is considered one of the most busiest roads Brisbane. In both surveys, buses are in second of most vehicles during the day, as majority of trucks that travel pass these roads to return back to their companies or delivering to buyers. Only seeing motorbikes once on each trip, it is the third most common form of vehicle in the Mansfield Community. Motorbikes are only seen once perhaps, since most residents of Mansfield are families so they wouldn’t need to buy one seated vehicle. Having last place tied between the buses and pushbikes. Perhaps the public buses weren’t seen travelling by due to its timetable and our timetable. In contrast the number of pushbikes encountered during our survey suggests that Mansfield residents are unhealthy or most pushbike riders are at work which decreases the likelihood of spotting

The main theme that is identified is the capability to complete tasks without assistance, the freedom to make decisions for themselves, and the will to do whatever they want. These elements enhance quality of life and the determinants of quality of life are dependent upon health and financial means (Bowling, 2007). Driving is one of those important factors shared in the book and the first thing mentioned by the woman interviewed. Transportation allows her the freedom to participate and engage in activities that she chooses on a daily basis.

In this section, I am going to discuss how social determinants of health, as exemplified by my observations, affect people in the area serviced by the NHS Trust I am training with. As I have mentioned in my introduction the road construction was to expand roads and build more cycling lanes. The negative aspect of this was noise pollution, more dusts and traffic level reduced. It can be very disturbing for people living near the road as road construction may begin early in the morning and finish late in the evening. The dusts from the road construction can cause asthma to individuals. The positive aspect of this could be to encourage people to cycle more because cycling is known to be a form of exercise. In terms of health, this reduces the

In the past three days, I have observed as well as recorded my travel behavior. I rely heavily upon an automobile when trying to get around and very rarely do I take a more sustainable mode of transportation. In the six places I traveled this past week, I have driven a car for more than 75% of the time. Looking back,

I am personally interested in this topic because I believe that access to environments that promote healthy lifestyles should not be restricted to the wealthy, and that city governments should concentrate on increasing bike-ability and walkability in lower income neighborhoods. Several studies have shown replacing car travel with cycling and walking decreases obesity and increases overall health5, and one study in Kansas even showed a significant decrease in employee healthcare costs following investments in local cycling programs3. However, before interest groups launch advocacy and infrastructure expansion, it is important that they understand the effects of that expansion, and integrate consideration for future housing affordability into their plans.

This rise in morbidity is largely reflected by changes within society, with urbanisation and global marketing promoting unhealthy lifestyles and discouraging physical activity(Alexander & Baur 2007). Changes in marketing and food supply has led to readily available and cheap alternatives to home cooked meals whilst, changes to occupations have replaced active environments with sedentary deskbound jobs (Glenny et al. 1997). Furthermore, challenges in the global economy has led to increased areas of social disadvantage, with a study by the Australian National Preventive Health Agency in 2005 showing socially disadvantage communities were twice at risk of obesity related disease than low disadvantaged living areas (ANPHA, 2014). Lack of education, availability of greenspace, rurality and ethnicity were further considered to effect obesity

The Australian Taxation Office defines the goods and services tax as “a broad-based tax of 10% on most goods, services and other items sold or consumed in Australia” (2015a). Some GST-free products and services include “most basic food”, “some medical, health and care services”, “some medical aids and appliances” and “some medicines” (Australian Taxation Office, 2015b). For example, basic foods like fruit, milk and bread are GST-exclusive (Australian Taxation Office, 2014a) because they play a vital role in Australian diets and should be easily accessible. These relatively unprocessed foods contain a variety of nutrients (Cranston, 2016). Items such as lollies and chips however are not considered to be part of the basic food group and are GST-inclusive (Australian Taxation Office, 2014a) as excessive consumption may lead to adverse health issues such as obesity (Raising Children Network, 2013). As basic foods are GST-free they cost less, and consumers are more inclined to buy these cheaper options than those with GST. Although the government collects less revenue, GST-exemptions ensure that food with nutritional benefits and lower health risks are obtained easily by lower income earners. Similarly, other goods and services like condoms, sunscreen and doctor's appointments do not attract GST (Australian Taxation Office, 2014b) because they are needed to prevent illness and promote the general wellbeing of Australians. If these items were taxed, Australians would be forced to pay more for preventative health measures and as a result may forgo them completely (Welch, 2010). Although these items are only utilised occasionally, an increase in their price would have an adverse impact upon the health and safety of individuals and society and lead to increases in sicknesses such as sexually transmitted infections and skin cancers. Ultimately, this would result in more complex health issues and

This type of transportation includes riding trains, buses, and driving cars. According to the report titled Active Transportation and the Built Environment by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (LACDPH) an estimated 66% of all adults are overweight and have some type of chronic disease (“Active Transportation and The Built Environment,” 2014). This is largely due to ineffective policies that are in place and do not promote active transportation. These policies have prevented the city from incorporating a better system that would improve and increase walkability, bikeability, and allow residents to stay physically active while reducing chronic disease risk. Simply having these strategies in effect will not guarantee lower rates of chronic diseases nor boost resident participation. There are still many circumstances that come into play that prevent residents from using active transportation. Many times, residents won’t use a walk ways because the area is unwelcoming, there are no sidewalks or crosswalks, there’s high criminal activity, and there is very little street lighting (“Active Transportation and The Built Environment,” 2014). Similarly, residents will stay away from using bicycles for transportation because there are not enough bike lanes, roads are filled with potholes, and there are no clear road markings for cyclist (“Active Transportation

One appealing feature of the public transportation is the lower cost in comparison with using your own car. A real example from my life when I was a student at University

The following sections of this paper will begin with a literature review. This will provide an insight into the current situation of motorcycle and motor scooter commuting in Australia and other relevant countries. This will then be followed by an explanation of the JTW data from the Australian Census, including any limitations. A detailed analysis of the JTW data will then follow for the three major cities. The final section of this study will entail the research directions and conclusions.

goeverden et al (2006) stated subsidy is necessary for public transport. First, vulnerable groups such as low-income households, those without driver’s license, people with disabilities need to be motivated to avoid the problem of social exclusion. In this case the subsidy serves as a 'social function’. Second, limit the use of private