Losing the battle of the bulge: causes and consequences of increasing obesity

Increasing proportions of Australians are overweight or obese, a problem sh ared by all developed and, increasingly, developing nations. Now as many pe ople in the world are overweight as underweight. Increasing obesity is a serious public health as weft as economic problem. Its associated greater risks of high blood pressure, heart disease, osteoar thritis, type 2 diabetes, some cancers and other health problems consume co nsiderable proportions of healthcare budgets. Health inequalities often reflect social inequalities, but with overweight there is also a male-female difference in the relationship between overweig ht and socioeconomic status. Health promotion campaigns are underestimating the social determinants of health, and "risk fatigue" is affecting attitud es to complying with healthy lifestyle standards. Proposals to reverse the obesity trend, such as taxing or restricting the a dvertising of unhealthy foods, raise contentious issues of choice and regul ation.