With the increase in numbers of overweight children and young adults, Canada and other developed countries are facing an obesity epidemic, according to a new article in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, which goes on to state that legislative approaches will be required to address the problem. Canadians have become heavier and less fit over the last three decades; people aged 20-39 years have the BMI (body mass index) that people aged 40 or older had thirty years ago. The 2007-2009 Canadian... ...Read more »

A new report by the University of Queensland and Deakin University has highlighted the need for preventative health, recommending a 10% junk food tax, salt limits in bread, margarine and cereals, increase alcohol tax, a ban on alcohol ads and an increased drinking age of 21. The Assessing Cost Effectiveness of Prevention (ACE-Prevention) project is the result of five years of research, funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council.  It is the most comprehensive evaluation of health... ...Read more »

New research by VicHealth (the Victorian Health Promotion Foundation) suggests that three quarters of Victorians support a levy on alcohol and junk food advertising, with proceeds going to replace sponsorship by these industries in community sports. The survey also found that more than four out of five Victorians would like to see and end to alcohol sponsorship of local sports clubs, provided the lost funds are made up. The survey, conducted in November last year, randomly surveyed 1500 Victorians... ...Read more »

Researchers from the University of Buffalo in the US have published a study suggesting that increasing the prices of unhealthy foods could do more to prevent obesity than subsidising healthy foods. In the study, New York mothers were placed in a mock-up supermarket, with cards showing product images and prices, and were invited to spend a limited amount of money buying foods for their family.  Researchers found that increasing the prices of unhealthy foods caused the participants to purchase lower... ...Read more »