Aussie weight gain
June 13, 2012
A NEW study from Bupa has
found that adults in families are far
more likely to be classified as
overweight or obese than young
couples or young singles.
The Bupa Family Health Survey
looked at 1188 (526 male and 662
female) adults who were young
singles, young couples, or in young
or older families, across Australia,
and found that 61% of surveyed
parents under 40 years were
overweight based on their Body
Mass Index (BMI).
Comparatively 40% of couples
without kids and 45% of young
singles were found to be overweight.
“Family life can be go, go, go, and
we know sometimes parents’
health can suffer due to a busy
household,” said Bupa Chief
Medical Officer, Dr Paul Bates.
“While this can have serious
implications for the parent, it’s also
easy to forget that kids are picking
up on mum and dads’ behaviours
along the way.
“It’s concerning that many young
parents have reached such an
unhealthy outcome at such an early
age.
“In order for kids to learn the
behaviours they need to live a
healthy lifestyle early, parents need
to show them how it’s done,” Bates
added.
Interestingly, the survey found
that fathers with young children
had the highest figures of obesity,
with three quarters in the overweight
or obese categories, and
more than a third of this group in
denial about their actual weight
classification.
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