mikescott
12-06-2004, 02:35 PM
Obesity weighs down gains in treating disease
By Helen Tobler
June 12, 2004
ADVANCES in medical research and public health campaigns have changed the face of health in Australia, with death rates from the biggest killer diseases on the decline.
A report, released this month, shows that fewer Australians are developing cancer, and those who do have it are surviving longer, thanks to advances in treatment.
Cancer rates have been driven down by campaigns such as anti-smoking messages, and better screening and treatment.
The US National Cancer Institute reported that Australia and the US are the top two nations when it comes to cancer survival rates.
Cardiovascular disease - which includes heart disease and stroke - is the nation's biggest killer, accounting for 37 per cent of all deaths.
Yet rates of cardiovascular disease per 100,000 people have dropped over the past 25 years by a staggering 60 per cent, due to advances in medical treatment and public health messages.
Widespread use of drugs to control blood pressure and cholesterol, and new surgical techniques, have meant heart disease is not the killer it was 30 years ago.
Those people who do have heart attacks are far more likely -- if they make it to hospital -- to survive.
Rates of lung cancer, breast cancer, prostate cancer and diabetes have all fallen over the past 15 years, current research reveals. Yet public health experts warn that the rise in obesity and type 2 diabetes threatens to undo years of good work in preventing deaths from heart disease.
Over the past 20 years, rates of obesity and diabetes have doubled. Sixty per cent of Australians are overweight, and more than half of the population does not get enough physical activity.
The "amazing, dramatic decline" in rates of heart disease is being threatened by the obesity epidemic, said Peter Thompson, cardiologist and spokesman for the National Heart Foundation. "We have had magnificent success in Australia in controlling smoking and blood pressure and cholesterol treatment, but we may well lose all those gains if we allow the population to continue getting fat around the middle and having diabetes-related problems that result from that."
Professor Thompson said if we cannot stop the rise in obesity rates, "then we might find that successes of the last 20 years will be turned around and all our hopes for steady improvements will be dashed".
Mark Nelson, senior research fellow at the department of epidemiology and preventive medicine at Monash University, said one of the biggest concerns was the increase in type 2 diabetes, caused by obesity, lack of exercise and poor diet.
"It's the one area where we risk losing ground that we've gained through advances in medical care and public health measures such as the tobacco tax and smoking restrictions, protection from secondary smoke."
By Helen Tobler
June 12, 2004
ADVANCES in medical research and public health campaigns have changed the face of health in Australia, with death rates from the biggest killer diseases on the decline.
A report, released this month, shows that fewer Australians are developing cancer, and those who do have it are surviving longer, thanks to advances in treatment.
Cancer rates have been driven down by campaigns such as anti-smoking messages, and better screening and treatment.
The US National Cancer Institute reported that Australia and the US are the top two nations when it comes to cancer survival rates.
Cardiovascular disease - which includes heart disease and stroke - is the nation's biggest killer, accounting for 37 per cent of all deaths.
Yet rates of cardiovascular disease per 100,000 people have dropped over the past 25 years by a staggering 60 per cent, due to advances in medical treatment and public health messages.
Widespread use of drugs to control blood pressure and cholesterol, and new surgical techniques, have meant heart disease is not the killer it was 30 years ago.
Those people who do have heart attacks are far more likely -- if they make it to hospital -- to survive.
Rates of lung cancer, breast cancer, prostate cancer and diabetes have all fallen over the past 15 years, current research reveals. Yet public health experts warn that the rise in obesity and type 2 diabetes threatens to undo years of good work in preventing deaths from heart disease.
Over the past 20 years, rates of obesity and diabetes have doubled. Sixty per cent of Australians are overweight, and more than half of the population does not get enough physical activity.
The "amazing, dramatic decline" in rates of heart disease is being threatened by the obesity epidemic, said Peter Thompson, cardiologist and spokesman for the National Heart Foundation. "We have had magnificent success in Australia in controlling smoking and blood pressure and cholesterol treatment, but we may well lose all those gains if we allow the population to continue getting fat around the middle and having diabetes-related problems that result from that."
Professor Thompson said if we cannot stop the rise in obesity rates, "then we might find that successes of the last 20 years will be turned around and all our hopes for steady improvements will be dashed".
Mark Nelson, senior research fellow at the department of epidemiology and preventive medicine at Monash University, said one of the biggest concerns was the increase in type 2 diabetes, caused by obesity, lack of exercise and poor diet.
"It's the one area where we risk losing ground that we've gained through advances in medical care and public health measures such as the tobacco tax and smoking restrictions, protection from secondary smoke."