Differences between groups

The interactive graphs below allow you to explore the prevalence of overweight and obesity in different geographical areas and among different population groups. Overweight and obesity measures are based on measured height and weight data.

Remoteness areas

An important factor associated with overweight and obesity is the area in which an individual lives, including its remoteness (which is measured by the area’s road distance from goods and services such as hospitals and doctors) (AIHW 2018). People living outside metropolitan areas often have poorer health outcomes than people living in metropolitan areas, including higher rates of overweight and obesity.

In 2017–18, a higher proportion of Australian children and adolescents aged 2–17 living in Inner regional areas were overweight or obese compared with those living in Major cities (29% and 23%, respectively) (Figure 1). For children and adolescents living in Outer regional and remote areas, the proportion was 27%. This pattern was similar for boys and girls (ABS 2019).

This bar chart shows that, in 2017–18, for both boys and girls, the proportion of children and adolescents aged 2–17 who were overweight or obese was generally highest in Inner regional areas (29% overall), followed by Outer regional and remote areas, and lowest in Major cities (23% overall). However, not all of these differences were statistically significant.

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In 2017–18, Australians aged 18 or over living in Outer regional and remote and Inner regional areas were more likely to be overweight or obese than those living in Major cities. After adjusting for differences in the age structure of these populations, 70% of those living in Outer regional and remote areas and 71% in Inner regional areas were overweight or obese, compared with 65% of those living in Major cities.

A similar pattern was observed for women, with those living in regional areas more likely to be overweight or obese than those in Major cities—65% of those living in Outer regional and remote areas, 64% in Inner regional areas, and 57% of those living in Major cities (after adjusting for age).

Among men, those living in Inner regional areas were more likely to be overweight or obese than those living in Major cities (78% compared with 73%), with a non-significant difference found for those living in Outer regional and remote areas (75%) (after adjusting for age).

This bar chart shows that after adjusting for age, in 2017–18, women living in Outer regional and remote areas, or Inner regional areas, were more likely to be overweight or obese than those living in Major cities. Men living in Inner regional areas were more likely to be overweight or obese than men living in Major cities.

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Socioeconomic areas

Socioeconomic factors (such as a person’s education, income and occupation) are important determinants of health (AIHW 2018). Results in this section use the overall socioeconomic index of the area in which people live as a measure of their socioeconomic disadvantage. People living in lower socioeconomic (that is, more disadvantaged) areas are generally at a greater risk of poor health. In Australia, there is evidence of a pattern of higher rates of overweight and obesity as the level of disadvantage increases (AIHW 2018).

In 2017–18, children and adolescents aged 2–17 living in the lowest socioeconomic areas were more likely to be overweight or obese (28%) than those in the highest socioeconomic areas (21%) (Figure 3). Similarly, the obesity rate in this age group was 2.4 times as high for those in the lowest socioeconomic areas (11%) compared with the highest (4.4%) (ABS 2019).

When comparing boys and girls, there was some variation across socioeconomic areas, but the prevalence of overweight and obesity was not significantly different in the lowest socioeconomic areas (26% of boys and 31% of girls), or the highest (21% for both boys and girls).

This bar chart shows the prevalence of overweight and obesity across 5 socioeconomic areas (with area 1 representing the most disadvantaged areas, and area 5 representing the lease disadvantaged areas). It shows that, in 2017–18, for boys and girls, the most disadvantaged areas had a higher prevalence of overweight and obesity than the least disadvantaged areas (although the differences weren’t statistically significant).

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In 2017–18, Australians aged 18 or over in the lowest socioeconomic areas were more likely to be overweight or obese than those in the highest socioeconomic areas—72% compared with 62% (after adjusting for differences in age structure).

Among men, the age-adjusted prevalence of overweight and obesity for those in the lowest socioeconomic areas (77%) was significantly higher than for those in the highest socioeconomic areas (73%).

Among women, there was an even greater difference in overweight and obesity between the lowest socioeconomic areas and the highest—66% for those in the lowest socioeconomic areas and 50% for those in the highest socioeconomic areas (after adjusting for age).

For both men and women, rates of obesity were the underlying reason for the difference by socioeconomic areas. Among men, the age-adjusted prevalence of obesity was 37% in the lowest socioeconomic areas, compared with 26% in the highest areas. Among women, 38% were obese in the lowest socioeconomic areas, compared with 22% in the highest areas, after adjusting for age.

This bar chart shows the prevalence of overweight and obesity, after adjusting for age, across 5 socioeconomic areas (with area 1 representing the most disadvantaged areas, and area 5 representing the lease disadvantaged areas). It shows that, in 2017–18, for men and women, the most disadvantaged areas had a higher prevalence of overweight and obesity than the least disadvantaged areas, with a larger difference observed for women.

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Primary Health Networks

In 2017–18, of measured Primary Health Network (PHN) areas, after adjusting for age, the Western New South Wales PHN area had the highest prevalence of overweight and obesity, with 4 in 5 adults overweight or obese (83%). The Gold Coast PHN area had the lowest prevalence, with about 3 in 5 adults overweight or obese (59%).

This figure shows a map of Australia with the proportion of overweight and obese adults displayed for each Primary Health Network (PHN) area. It also shows a list of PHNs with their prevalence of overweight and obese adults shown in relation to the Australian average. It shows that of 31 PHN areas, the Western NSW PHN area had the highest prevalence of overweight and obesity (83%), while the Gold Coast PHN area had the lowest (59%).

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References

ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) 2019. National Health Survey, 2017–18. Customised data report. Canberra: ABS.

AIHW (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare) 2018. Australia's health 2018. Australia’s health series no. 16. Cat. no. AUS 221. Canberra: AIHW.