A study placing the Riverina at the top of the state’s fat list has prompted a call to action to stave off health issues and early death.
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It was revealed on Monday the region had the highest proportion of obese residents in the state, with obesity affecting more than a third of Riverina people.
The analysis, released by the Heart Foundation, said 81 per cent of people were inactive and did not complete just 12 minutes of vigorous physical activity each day of the week.
The news came as no surprise to Wagga personal trainer Mick Wainwright, who blasted people who made excuses about not getting enough exercise.
Mr Wainwright said the city had an ingrained “laziness” that contributed to the statistic.
“It doesn’t surprise me at all. Even when I’m not working, you just see obese people everywhere. It’s becoming worse and worse by the day,” he said. “We’re fairly lazy.”
The report was designed to paint a “disturbing picture” for the federal government about the reach of obesity in Australian society.
The Heart Foundation said it was “shameful” the government committed 1.7 per cent of the health budget to prevention of health problems, compared to New Zealand’s 7 per cent and Canada’s 5.9 per cent.
Obesity has been linked to heart disease and stroke, high blood pressure, diabetes and even cancer.
Murrumbidgee Local Health District (MLHD) health promotion manager Christine May said health problems such as obesity had become “normalised” in public thinking.
Mrs May said the MLHD had targeted schools for education programs about healthy eating, but was up against constant exposure to obesity in wider society.
“Think about it,” she said.
“What are the images that we have around us with 63 per cent of people overweight or obese? Although we have changed the mindset with smoking, we haven’t seen that change with body size.”
She said a range of factors – such as a disproportionate amount of elderly, Aboriginal and low socioeconomic groups – contributed to high rates of obesity.
Those groups were more likely to be uneducated about cooking healthy foods and would opt for cheaper unhealthier options, she said. Nearly 75 per cent of people polled on the Advertiser website on Monday said they believed the city had too many fast food outlets.
However, Mr Wainwright hosed down that suggestion and said major citys had the same ratio of fast food outlets as Wagga.
