Type 2 diabetes, mate? By crikey. Australia's diabetes epidemic continues to be a problem. News this week indicates the spread of obesity, and with it associated conditions like Type 2 diabetes, in rural areas is far worse than previously realized. A survey of 806 randomly selected adults (okay, not the biggest sample, admittedly) found that a great many are affected by the disease.

Based on their findings from that survey, researchers calculate that almost three-quarters of Aussie men living in rural areas are overweight. They think women in rural areas may be slightly better-off - around two-thirds may be overweight. This puts rural Australians at a very high risk for T2DM. The conclusion, stated in the Medical Journal of Australia: "urgent population-wide action is required to tackle the problem."

As is the case in the US, a big concern is how to treat all those people as they age and their overall health worses. Specifically, what will become of Australia's public healthcare system? "We might get a whole generation, now in their 40s, 50s and 60s, who will do markedly worse than their parents," predicts lead researcher for the study, Professor Edward Janus of Melbourne's Western Hospital.

Australian doctors have proposed that the nation introduce a junk food tax. They argue that such a tax would force people to eat more fruits and vegetables, thereby making a dent in the epidemic obesity levels now seen in Australia (as is also the case here in the US). The proposal appeared in the form of an editorial published in the latest Medical Journal of Australia. The doctors say that only direct government intervention can slow the obesity "juggernaut" that is fueling the rapid rise of all sorts of nasty health problems including - surprise! - diabetes. The editorial says that more than one million Australians are suffering from diabetes caused by obesity (Type 2 diabetes).

"Career suicide" is the term I think would spring to most politicians' minds at this suggestion. So it was not surprising to me when I read that the Australian government's response has been tepid. The Health Minister stated his belief that people are responsible for their own eating habits and that the government cannot and should not legislate on the issue. The minister also said the Australian government already spends millions of dollars a year on programs that encourage healthy lifestyles. However, others disagree. For example, the Health Minister for the state of Queensland remarked that it is hypocritical for governments to put restrictions on alcohol and tobacco, but not on junk foods. According to some estimates, junk foods cause at least as many health problems as do smoking and alcohol consumption.