Obesity to Cost Australia Tens of Billions in Productivity Loss: Research

Without intervention, obesity is projected to cost the economy $87.7 billion annually by 2032 and $158 billion by 2060.

Clients exercise at a weight loss centre near Sydney, Australia, on February 4, 2010. Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images

Australia will lose tens of billions of dollars in productivity each year over the next decade due to high obesity rates among the population, a new report has found.

According to a joint study by the McKell Institute and the Menzies Research Centre, two in three Australian adults (67 percent) are now classified as overweight or obese, a significant increase from 56 percent in 1995.