Been noticing a lot of media attention going around that Australians are one of the most overweight developed nation. Theres been multiple stories on the news and the Weight Watchers commercial going around that really caught my attention.

Can watch the add here:
http://www.letsgetstarted.com.au/

Interesting to here that there is supposedly 7 million Australians overweight and 1 in 4 children are overweight. That a third of our population. But what does it come down too? is Australian's too lazy to exercise?

I think the main part to blame, is all the fast food. I currently work in the city, and everywhere i go the fast food restaurants are filled up to the brinks. Our food portions are also massive in comparison to those in Europe. That a mixture of laziness does the body no good.

What do u think are the main causes? and what can be done to fix the overwhelming issue? Cause i do want my kids living in a healthy environment

Further stats are here:
http://144.53.252.30/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Latestproducts/4102.0Media%20Release12007?opendocument&tabname=Summary&prodno=4102.0&issue=2007&num=&view=

Hi Chindia,

I don't believe it has anything to do with fast food or even larger portions, though these would have some bearing.

I remember the days of the big 'fry up', with a huge platefuls of bacon/sausage/chips etc,etc.,Fish and greasy chips in newspaper, fried in lard!

Australia had it's lamb chops for breakfast; woo hoo!

Immobility. That's the culprit. Lack of exercise. We simply don't move like we used to. Not only do we have TV., we are now sitting in front of THESE things! Our kids are obsessed with them!

We used to walk; we used to ride our bikes; we used to kick a ball; play team games. Most of us don't do this anymore.

A contributory factor is our emotional state. Unemployment, mortgage worries etc; the easy option becomes the easy option. Hamburger-TV.

If we don't look at the causes, we cannot deal with the effects

I'd have to agree that its not just fast food but he lack of energy people have these days. People sort of get home sit down can't get back up. Stress contributes.

GINX has put his finger on a kind of 'structural' aspect of the problem.

Using myself as an example here.. once I get into 'fitness' due to
a) Pretty good weather (I don't do well in the COoooooold)
b) Not tooooo much work on which overflows into non 'office' hours and impending deadlines
c) No major emotional disruptions, family, friends, world falling apart.

I find it easy to keep fit and enjoy exercise.
On the other hand
When work is too much for normal hours.. I tend to "slide" into the quicky meals-TV as a comforter/Informer and substitute for 'me' doing stuff; mode.

Then, once you lose your 'edge' fitness wise, I think "aah.. I'm out of the zone, no point in going for a run now, because I won't be able to keep it up this busy week... let it ride and just watch news" or something.

But the kids.....they have to have a passion for something to be active. If they don't.... like no competitive sport...there are just tooo many distractions... computer+games+internet+cyber social networks etc... and the only thing which moves during all that is your fingers on a game console or keyboard.

SOLUTION ? ..... we should all become Exclusive Brethos :) Ok.. that was for Ginxy's benefit and entertainment, but seriously, a re-structuring of our society would be needed. Some suggestions.

1/ Families need leadership... Rules.. possibly TV (and computer) does not go on until xyz o'clock.
2/ Conditional reward. "TV/Computer can be on for X hours if Y hours of sport is done. There is a device I saw on TV the other day, where it COUNTS the number of steps kids do, and then relays this info to the tube which then will come 'on' for a proportional number of hours :)

I really do think Australian's have become lazy. There a scene in the commercial, when they stairs are empty and the escalators going up are packed. I see this on a regular basis, and elevators are opted for going down a storey. With the advancement of technology, comes further laziness.

Ah, i think its quite often that parents should provide a healthy lifestyle for their kids at a early age. My work colleagues often eat fast food, a bottle of coke and chips for lunch, and when i question them about it, they go "I'm used to it". Just proves that old habits die hard.

I think most of us eat crap because it's so available.
We get busy and stressed and it's grab it and run.
I wonder how we'd get on if we ingrained it into our culture that if we're able to use the stairs we should do it.
I take a walk every night, not just for my health but because I have a dog that whinges incessantly until he gets a walk.
Homemade vegetable juices for breakfast instead of the usual carbfest
would no doubt work wonders but who has the time and/or the patience to keep cleaning the stupid juicing machine.

Great! It's not just me!

I agree about breakfast juice, Goddess. But 30 seconds to juice and 20 minutes to get all the fibres out of the liquefier section; Nah!!

Goddess
I think your post is closer to the mark. My friend has helped a lot of people over the years because we have an easy property to convert into a gym swim fun place.
I have sat in a few eveings and early mornings over the years and without a seconds thought I can tell you most of her people were stressed and especially depressed.
nine out of ten of them had no support either in everyday life or to encourage them to loose weight.
Once you offer frienship a real support they blossom into new people.
I think Australians have bcome more stressed and more depressed and thats why they cant seem to find the get up and go to excersise prefering to switch off in front of the tV because it takes their minds off themselves their problems and their bodies.

Treat the problem that causes it first and you have less overweight and happier people.

If you know somebody who is overweight offer to walk with them and even invite them to have a man meal with you together for a few weeks to get them on the right track
You will be amazed the difference it makes to most people who just need to feel cared about.

Spot on PALE,
The electronic media when used as "brain candy" to justify our own inactivity is horrifying.
Tonight I watched a lunar eclipse AND fed some newborn baby ducklings{with Mum and Dad's grace} some food scraps and it felt good.
I had to walk four kilometres to do this. What a wonderful world.
Oh yeah.

Good on you Boaz, but in becoming a bretho, what about those confounded bad scarf days?

I dunno, some of these may have self-esteem issues, and walking upto them and saying "hey, ur overweight and i wanna help u out" isn't ideal when i think about it. I think it all starts at a young age, parents ought to communicate with their children to eat healthier food. When me and my colleagues go out for lunch they usually have a meat pie, coke and a packet of chips. When i usually ask how they can eat all that, they go they're used to it.

I am no dietitian but I do know something about not getting overweight
Being aware of fat and sugar content in everything we eat is so important.
A daily brisk walk to get your cardiovascular system moving is also a bonus.
Plus, not being genetically predisposed to obesity, and I'm sure some people are, is a big help.
I am one of the lucky ones who finds all of the above fairly easy.

I think eating habits slip into your life and in general all parents want to be healthy and give their children the best. I have 5 children and work full time. None of them are overweight and xbox/playstations have never been allowed in bedrooms or on during week unless raining. Eldest 2 were boarders for last 3 years of their schooling and didnt gain weight and same should apply for the younger 3.
Due to new curriculums at primary/secondary schools, computer time is a necessity every night but I am in control of it as I pay the bills.
Being single, I have a fridge with pizza coupons on it, lol. I also have frozen junk not just for them. It is always about moderation.

I do believe that takeaways are more upfront and allow children to be responsible not just the parents. Lets face it kids are easy until they reach the age of independence.

I do not agree with the one in four australian children being overweight and would like those figures to be broken down into trouble spots. I rarely see an overweight child, and out of 350 primary children, I would hazzard an exaggerated guess that 4 of them are in an overweight situation where I am located.
My 10 year old son is not overweight but can gain weight easily. He can play sports and run around for 1/2 hours a day and all weeken and still be 3/5 kilos overweight. Stomach weight.

I believe that the new active programmes in schools will help the young ones learn to play team/solo sports, gain confidence and find something they like out of all the activities they learn. If they can focus on confidence and getting a reward out of doing sports it will help children who are not born atheletes not to give up later.

I would if I could but I cant so I wont is my lazy motto and I need to change that. Maybe when it gets warmer....

Chindia,
I believe the problem starts the day a child is born. The poor thing is bombarded with a plethora of needles, supposedly to guard against every conceivable affliction known to man. ( It is still a very "grey" area as to exactly what effects all these needles cumulutively have upon a growing child?)
We then have the situation in the home where the child is growing up. Both parents are, (if the child is "lucky" enough to have both parents in the home) generally working to service a mortgage or to service the cost of a very materialistic lifestyle, thus the child is "farmed" out to a Child Care Centre, relative or child-minder and is influenced for a large part of the day by an outsider instead of the parent.
Society and the attitudes of society plays a very large part in the upbringing of the child, thus the child learns very quickly all the bad things in life, and there are many, that are practiced detrimentally by its peer group.
Television certainly does little to help children as the commercial channels are absolutly devastating with the amount and quality of ads, (so many focus on junk food!). Children being what they are tend NOT to watch educational programmes, but prefer violent and rubbishy themes, similar to their peer groups.
Another "grey" area is in the food that we are consuming. It seems that virtually every single consumable item of food contains some form of chemical that is dangerous to us in one way or another,...consider the short period of time that today`s fruit and vegetables last before dissolving into 'slush',....the amount of preservatives, pesticides and antibiotics etc that we are now consuming.
We have become a lazy race opting for the easiest way to do everything and if we continue down this path, eventually evolution will see our legs waste away and become useless!

I don't blame fast food for the obesity epidemic as much as I blame technology in general. I grew up in the 50's & 60's and life for my generation was a lot more active then compared to now. We were always outside come sunshine or rain. We rode a bike or walked everywhere. We ran, laughed and played, sometimes in a rough and tumble kind of way, boy's, girls and toddlers all together, all covered in grime, most with skinned knees. No over-protection with our lot.

But that was back in the industrial age where dad worked to provide enough money for our daily needs. "Wants" were few and far between. Mum stayed home, but had an extended family of friends and relative/visitors to keep socially satisfied. Then society began to change. Industry and hard work gave way to machines that took the jobs of laborers. EG: Instead of a track laying gang, we now have giant machines to lay sleepers, rails and pack the ballast. Hand tools have given over to labor saving devices and whole generations of workers have been displaced as a result.

On top of that we have what I refer to as Sick Society Syndrome (SSS). SSS manifests itself as a society where slow motion shots of bullets passing through flesh fills our prime time viewing. Mind numbing reality TV shows dull our senses. Because of what we watch on TV, we're too scared to send our kids out into the street to play and those who get their ideas from the TV take full advantage of those fears. So mum drives her kids everywhere in an over sized "status symbol" called an SVU (American speak, once again from the TV).

SSS manifests itself in countless thousands of other ways, but I'm running out of word space. Then again, maybe I'm simply getting too old for this brave new World?

I was never apart of that generation, but technology sure has taken over. Kids sit inside on the computer and playing games more than over. I try my best to condemn but its quite inevitable, there are internet cafes everywhere. I understand u completely Aimee, your not too old lol.

Hello and new to this but have opinions on everything health related.
Overweight comes of too much input and not enough output. I agree with others who said plenty of lard sandwiches were eaten in the 'old days' and well, they needed it because with that fatty intake was the output of play. Yes play. So sad the generation now don't 'play'. My brother and I (70s kids), spent half the day long climbing trees and making up games with a single solitary tennis ball. We were ACTIVE. Parents need to put a finger on the off button of the PC and TV. Who rules the household anyway. Who pays the bills.
Digressing, diets do not work. The body puts itself into 'starvation' mode and will slow metabolism down if it senses the person isn't eating well enough. A vicious cycle of weight fluctuations can only come of it. Something to think about. Output has to be greater than intake. Fullstop

Dieting is becoming less and less common. What are the good dieting companies out there? Has anyone here had any experience with them?

chindia, I've used Lite & Easy previously along with a number of my friends. We all had success, enjoyed the convenience and most of the food but I think that we have all stopped because the ongoing cost was more than we wished to continue to carry (or in one case moving to an area where it was not available).

Certainly worth while to change eating habits and for people living alone possibly a great long term idea.

Combined with moderate levels of exercise it was great. The main benefit for me was that it kept serving sizes down.

R0bert

Don't go near any dieting companies unless you are going to use 'their food' for life. Sounds expensive to me. Surely it is about lifestyle change and what goes in the mouth being less than energy output.
That isn't new and makes sense. What makes sense and works for me
is chosing foods that keep me more full for longer eg oats, fullgrain anything, and fibre filled things plus of course the natural appetite suppressor being Water. Water helps a lot. When many people are thirsty, they mistake it for hunger. Should try fluids first and if still 'hungry', well only then eat. I opt to eat small amounts and often; is good having a lot of snacks! Also Calcium helps move fat; I eat cheese every day. I am dropping weight from these couple of things and now I can't eat as much at once (good)! However, moving the body must also occur and don't measure by using scales. Measure by the fit of your clothes. Muscle is heavier than fat. I know which tissue I would sooner have. So don't 'diet' unless you're going to exercise in some form as well. I eat choc and other things everyday. Muscles demand energy foods and your metabolism rises, thus you don't put weight on. I hope you can follow that.
So results of weight decrease/toned trimmer body at least, comes with your lifestyle and any exercise that is enjoyed. A grinning and bearing it exercise never lasts does it. If you like golf, well pick up the clubs more (a lot of walking involved) or if you like cycling invest in a good bike. There is something for everyone. Good luck. No one has to be overweight if only they'd move their bodies more and eat the things that are better appreciated by the body. I feel more energised when I exercise. How about ya'll.

Snacking frequently is only a good thing if it is something like an apple or that type of thing. But given all you've written Cakers you know a bit about nutrition, so I reckon that's what you meant?

Mind you, I wish I could drop weight on daily cheese and choc!

Lucky beggar!!

Believe me, I have got 'good genes'. Is a matter of discipline and a snack is just like having a handful of almonds, or an apple (filling), a banana or a peanut butter sanga. I am only losing weight because of daily exercise (I mix it up)...dumbells with the TV one day, or a bike ride the next, along with eating less in a sitting.
I feel so much better being more energetic AND less depressed. You can't be depressed when you are feeling like your clothes are all loosening up. I can fit into things I'd put away 'in case'
:)

HAVEN"T got good genes, I mean LOL!

My brother used to have good genes, skinny, eat whatever he wants. Up until the age of 21, when he kept his diet and started piling on the kilos like no tomorrow. So i don't think genes would last forever.