About

About the Obesity Evidence Hub

The Obesity Evidence Hub is a joint project resulting from a partnership between the Cancer Council Victoria, the Bupa Health Foundation and the Food for Health Alliance. It is a foundational component to the Obesity Collective, a modern movement to drive action on important obesity initiatives in Australia.

The Obesity Evidence Hub’s objective is to identify, analyse and synthesise the evidence on obesity. By presenting the evidence base, our goal is to provide the platform for future policy development in Australia.

The Obesity Evidence Hub covers obesity trends; health impacts; prevention; environmental influences; and treatment. The hub is a constantly evolving platform, to be refreshed as new data becomes available and trends emerge over time.

Read more about the project partners.

Our approach

The information on this website draws on the best available evidence from the academic literature, including systematic reviews and meta-analyses where available. The most current data on rates of overweight and obesity and diet and exercise has been sourced from government agencies including the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare and the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

The Hub also uses a range of other sources including key reports by policy thinktanks and health groups; submissions to government inquiries; and reports from reputable media outlets. The information has been clearly referenced so that users of the Hub can seek out more information from source documents where this is useful for their purposes.

Content for the Hub has been overseen by Food for Health Alliance Executive Manager Jane Martin; and Academic Director of the Charles Perkins Centre at the University of Sydney Professor Stephen Simpson. With the exception of the Treatment section, content was mostly written by Cancer Council Victoria research and policy consultant Kate Hagan with input from the topic experts listed below.

• Trends: Professor Adrian Bauman; Claudia Gascoyne; Associate Professor Alison Hayes; Daniel Hunt; Professor Amanda Lee; Tegan Nuss; Maree Scully; Clare Slattery
• Health impacts: Professor Ian Caterson; Associate Professor Samantha Hocking; Dr Jasmine Just; Dr Priya Sumithran
• Prevention:
  • Marketing to children: Dr Jennifer Harris; Katarnya Hickey; Associate Professor Bridget Kelly; Wendy Watson
  • Labelling: Kathryn Bloom; Anita George; Dr Alexandra Jones; Clare Slattery
  • Tax and price: Dr Kathryn Backholer; Kathryn Bloom; Associate Professor Gary Sacks
• Environmental influences:
  • The obesogenic environment and industry influence: Kathryn Bloom; Katarnya Hickey; Dr Alexandra Jones
  • Settings-based approaches for children: Dr Seema Mihrshahi and Professor Louise Baur (authors)
  • Settings-based approaches for adults: Tope Adepoyibi; Dr Miranda Blake; Laura Paulsen; Professor Anna Peeters
  • Mass media campaigns: Associate Professor Helen Dixon; Dr Belinda Morley; Maree Scully
• Treatment (authors and reviewers are listed):
  • Behavioural interventions for adults: the Boden Collaboration on Obesity, Nutrition, Exercise and Eating Disorders at the University of Sydney; Professor Tim Gill
  • Medication and surgery for adults: Dr Priya Sumithran; Associate Professor Tania Markovic; Associate Professor Samantha Hocking and Professor Ian Caterson
  • Obesity-related infertility and complications in pregnancy: Dr Sarah Price; Dr Jade Eccles-Smith
  • Managing overweight and obesity in children and adolescents: Hiba Jebeile; Professor Louise Baur; Professor Kate Steinbeck; Dr Shirley Alexander
  • Weight bias and stigma in health care: Boden Collaboration on Obesity, Nutrition, Exercise and Eating Disorders at the University of Sydney; Professor Andrew Hill

We would also like to thank: Margaret Winstanley for her advice on the prevention section; Fernando Escorcia and Melissa McGrath for digital support; and Northmost Studio for designing the site.

Suggested citation

Obesity Evidence Hub. Cancer Council Victoria, Melbourne, 2020. Available from: www.obesityevidencehub.org.au