Sydney University's Institute of Obesity, Nutrition & Exercise (IONE) will today draw together some of Australia's leading obesity experts to review and measure the effectiveness of our response as a nation to the obesity epidemic.
The Institute is playing a leading role in the battle to control the obesity epidemic and lifestyle-related chronic diseases by providing a focus for advancing basic and clinical research, public health and policy development.
Executive Director of the Institute of Obesity, Nutrition & Exercise, Professor Ian Caterson said "We're dealing with one of the most serious health issues of our time. We know that the prevalence of obesity is increasing, particularly in children and adolescents. With this increased prevalence comes increased metabolic disease and an enormous burden on our health systems."
Today's forum Obesity: The Reality Check will seek to sort the facts from the hype and examine controversies surrounding measuring obesity and the key drivers of obesity as well as addressing crucial questions such as:
- Does tackling obesity lead to worsening eating disorders?
- Is obesity associated with significant reduction in life expectancy?
- Is it a greater health risk to be overweight or inactive?
- Is weight cycling more dangerous than being obese?
Prof Caterson said, "There have been a number of recent studies and I think an unhelpful debate about obesity and just how big Australia is and where we rank in the world and then there's been controversy around the measures that have been put in place to deal with the problem."