The obesity crisis that Australia is facing isn’t an isolated incident. For years America has reported on their population’s expanding waistlines, as have other countries around the world. But is this a western problem? Is it isolated to a particular race, as we can see it’s not isolated to a particular country? This blog will explore obesity amongst different ethnic groups.
Defining Ethnicity
In modern society we are very used to living amongst different races and cultures everyday, this makes defining ethnicity difficult. Do we define ethnicity by the colour of someone’s skin, their national identity, religion, culture or place of birth? For example in Australia we have many ethnic minorities that have migrated from their country of origin and have settled into the “aussie” way of life.
How does my ethnic background affect my weight?
Different ethnic groups have different physiological responses to fat storage, meaning that using a measuring method such as BMI to determine if a person is overweight can almost become obsolete. BMI is not often used alone, other measurement tools such as hip to waist ratio are determined, but again this can vary depending on the person’s race.
A good example of how this differs between ethnic groups are the south asian population. This group are at higher risk of disease such as cardiovascular and type 2 diabetes at a lower BMI than white males/females. Or in the case of black males, they have less fat and more lean muscle which can be misleading regarding BMI. South asian can carry more fat around the midsection which is more likely to cause long-term medical problems than carrying fat in other areas of the body. BMI in this case is not an accurate predictor of body fat or distribution and each case should be individually considered. In Singapore they have actually changed the BMI chart to better suit their population, with a lower “normal” BMI than western countries.
There are also cultural aspects to consider. For example in some cultures being overweight is viewed as attractive as opposed to being unattractive and unhealthy. If a person has migrated to a different country they may find it difficult to source the foods they are used to eating or they may be expensive, causing changes in their diet that can have a negative effect on their weight.
Differences in weight and ethnicity within Australia
The 2004-2005 National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Survey found that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders were 1.2 times more likely to be overweight or obese than white Australians. In 2012-2013 Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islander males were 1.4 times more likely and females 1.7 times more likely to be obese.
Of course there are more factors to consider than simply the ethnicity or race of a person. Often ethnic minorities are concentrated in poorer socio-economic areas of society which has also been shown to have higher rates of obesity and overweight individuals. Physiology of a person isn’t the only contributing factor.
If you are concerned about yourself or a loved one and suspect that you are overweight or obese then contact your doctor to discuss this further, as each case is individual and as this blog post illustrates you can’t rely on just one measurement tool such as BMI.
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