Alcohol, cancer deaths, obesity, life expectancy, out-of-pocket costs: Australia’s health in graphs
Australians’ life expectancy has increased steadily over time but dropped during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new report released last week by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.
The report — Australia’s Health 2026 — shows that between 2003 and 2024, Australians’ life expectancy and years lived in “full health” increased.
But the time spent in poor health also rose: by 1.2 years for men and 1.5 years for women.
Cancer causes the most burden of disease, or years of healthy life lost to illness and premature death.
But mental conditions and substance use disorders as a group are the second biggest cause of healthy life lost.
Dementia is now the leading cause of death in Australia, accounting for almost one in 10 deaths in 2024.
Dementia deaths rose by 39% in a decade, while deaths from coronary heart disease — the previous leading cause of death — decreased by 18%.
So what are the biggest recent changes to Australia’s health and wellbeing? The Conversation’s panel of health experts explain.
- Mental illness is rising among young people, but supports are not keeping up
Associate Professor Sebastian Rosenberg: Brain and Mind Centre, the University of Sydney
One in five Australians aged 16-85 (22%) had experienced a mental disorder in the previous 12 months. This rate appears fairly stable.
However, the proportion of people aged 16-24 experiencing a mental disorder has increased, from 26% to 39% between 2007 and 2020-22.
Given 75% of all mental illness manifests before the age of 25, we need effective responses for young Australians.
Mental illness is 15% of the total burden of disease and suicide. Meanwhile, self-inflicted injury was the leading cause of disease burden among males aged 15-44.
Yet a previous report found mental health accounts for only 7% of total health spending. This gap does not explain all of the crisis in mental health, but it explains something.
Now half a million Australians with severe or moderate psychosocial support needs are not receiving support through the National Disability Insurance Scheme or other government‐funded programs.
- More cancer in young people, but survival rates are increasing overall
Dr Sarah Diepstraten (PhD): Senior research officer, blood cells and blood cancer division, Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research
Significantly more Australians are surviving five years after a cancer diagnosis, up from 50% in 1987-91 to 72% in 2017-21.
This is due to people being diagnosed earlier, when cancers are easier to treat, as well as the availability of more effective therapies.
While survival rates have not improved for all cancers equally, even the deadliest cancers have seen major improvements. Pancreatic cancer only has a 14% five-year survival rate (2017-21), but this has increased from only 3.1% (1987-91).
The report highlights increasing cancer incidence among younger people. Diagnoses for people in their 30s have risen by 11.6% since 2000, primarily for colorectal and thyroid cancers.
But the actual numbers remain low (135 cases per 100,000 people), and the number of deaths from cancer among younger people has actually declined by 38% since 2000.
- Obesity has overtaken smoking as the leading contributor to disease
Professor Kathryn Backholer: Co-director, Deakin Centre for Global Preventive Health and Nutrition, Deakin University
Excess weight and obesity have overtaken tobacco use as the leading risk factor contributing to disease burden.
In 2022-24, around 13.2 million adults (67%) and 1.4 million children and adolescents (27%) were living with obesity or were overweight.
The generational pattern is particularly concerning. Australians born more recently are more likely to be living with obesity compared with previous generations at the same age. Among adults aged 25-34, obesity increased from 20% in 2011-12 to 29% in 2022-24.
Urgent action is needed to create healthier environments that make it easier for Australians to choose healthy foods and stay physically active.
We also need more equitable access to evidence-based treatment and care, including GLP-1 weight-loss medicines. As the report notes, the high cost of these medicines means the people with the greatest need are often less able to access them.
- Risky drinking is down, but we still drink more than our OECD peers
Adjunct Professor Nicole Lee: National Drug Research Institute, Curtin University
Australians drink 9.8L of pure alcohol (773 standard drinks) per person each year. This is well above the OECD average of 8.4L.
First Nations people are less likely to drink at all than the general population and risky drinking among First Nations people has fallen from 48% in 2010 to 33% in 2022-23.
Risky drinking, which is often linked to injuries and ED visits, has also declined in the general population.
But alcohol is now one of the most preventable drivers of chronic disease. It contributes to more than 200 health conditions, such as cancer, heart and liver disease, injuries and poor mental health.
- Healthcare costs have risen, with more people skipping care
Peter Breadon: Program director, Health and Aged Care, Grattan Institute
After pandemic fluctuations, three long-term trends resumed: government spending kept going up, so did the share of funding going to hospitals, and so did patient out-of-pocket fees.
Australia spent just over $10,000 per person on health in 2023/24. That is 17% higher than a decade ago, on top of inflation, and a quarter higher than the average among wealthy nations.
The biggest area of health spending remains hospitals, which take up a growing share, rising from 39% to 42% over the past decade.
Average out-of-pocket fees totalled $1634, nearly $200 more than a decade earlier (in today’s dollars).
As fees go up, more people are skipping care, with 8% of Australians saying they delayed or avoided a GP visit in 2024/25 because of the cost.
And for some care, patients shoulder a much bigger share of the bill. They pay the most for dental care, covering 61% of total costs, so it is no surprise 16% of people skipped dental care due to cost.
- Carers are compensating for system gaps and are burnt out
Professor Helen Dickinson: Public service research, UNSW Sydney
Unpaid carers provide ongoing support to family members, friends and neighbours who have a disability, chronic illness, mental illness, age-related frailty, dementia, or other condition that limits their independence.
In 2022 around three million Australians (one in eight) provided informal care, including 1.2 million primary carers. These carers perform a wide range of tasks that help the person remain safe, healthy and living in the community.
Unpaid carers are estimated to save the Australian economy around $77.9 billion each year in avoided care costs.
Research consistently shows carers experience poorer health and wellbeing than the general population. The AIHW report shows:
- 61% of carers did not report healthy levels of wellbeing, compared with 34% of Australians overall
- 43% felt lonely (often or always) compared with 12% of Australians overall
- 36% experienced high psychological distress, compared with 16% of Australians overall
The report warns that: Without better co-ordinated and more responsive formal support, pressures on unpaid carers may intensify.
Disclosure statements:
Dr Sarah Diepstraten (PhD) receives funding from the NHMRC, Cure Cancer Australia and My Room Children’s Cancer Charity.
Professor Kathryn Backholer is vice-president (policy) at the Public Health Association of Australia. She receives funding from the NHMRC, the Australian Research Council, The Ian Potter Foundation, the National Heart Foundation and VicHealth for her research related to food and nutrition and obesity prevention.
Adjunct Professor Nicole Lee has previously been awarded grants by state and federal governments, the NHMRC and other public funding bodies for alcohol and other drug research. She is CEO of Hello Sunday Morning, a government-funded not-for-profit alcohol early intervention service.
The Grattan Institute has been supported in its work by government, corporates and philanthropic gifts. A full list of supporting organisations is published at grattan.edu.au.
Professor Helen Dickinson receives funding from the Australian Research Council, the NHMRC, the Medical Research Future Fund and Australian governments.
Associate Professor Sebastian Rosenberg does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond his academic appointment.
Fron Jackson-Webb, Deputy Editor and Senior Health Editor, The Conversation and Matt Garrow, Editorial Web Developer, The Conversation
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
