Overweight and obesity refers to excess body weight. Excess weight, especially obesity, is a major risk factor for chronic conditions such as cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, asthma, back pain and some cancers. Overweight and obesity is also associated with higher rates of death (AIHW 2017).
In 2015, 8.4% of the total burden of disease in Australia was due to overweight and obesity (AIHW 2019). Overweight and obesity was the leading risk factor contributing to non-fatal burden (living with disease) (see the Australian Burden of Disease Study 2015: Interactive data on risk factor burden for more information).
Collecting information on overweight and obesity is important for managing associated health problems.
Body mass index (BMI)
Body Mass Index (BMI) is an internationally recognised standard for classifying overweight and obesity in adults. BMI is calculated by dividing a person’s weight in kilograms by the square of their height in metres. BMI does not necessarily reflect body fat distribution or describe the same degree of fatness in different individuals. At a population level however, BMI is a practical and useful measure for identifying overweight and obesity.
This report uses measured height and weight for calculated BMI values, as self-reported values are less accurate.