Health in Australia

Health of Non-Aboriginal Children

Unlike Aboriginal children, Non-Aboriginal children benefit from good healthcare. Australia enjoys a low infant mortality rate at 5.8 (deaths per 1,000 live births). The leading cause of deaths for infants is sudden infant death syndrome (Australia'a Health, 1998).

Due to Australia's relatively clean environment, children do not suffer from problems of infectious diseases. Australian children do however suffer from nutritional disorders. Obesity is a growing health problem, particularly in adolescents and urban children. Eight percent of Australian girls and five percent of boys are severely overweight (Brown 1980). Junk food advertising and unhealthy eating habits have been blamed for the high percentage of overweight chilren.

Another health risk that faces Australian children is the growing drug problem. The drug policy of Australia is referred to as "reduction of harm". This policy's aims to educate children about the negative effects of drug, and to teach children how to safely use drugs (Pearman, 1998). Australia faces a major problem in that children are growing up thinking that it is normal to use drugs. Due to the government policies on drug use, children's minds and bodies are being damaged, the futures of some children are being destroyed, and some children are dying (Pearman, 1998). Forty percent of Australia's youth have tried marijuana, and about fifty two percent of children would accept an offer of marijuana. Ten percent of the total population have tried at least one hard drug including heroin, amphetamines, hallucinogens, cocaine, ecstasy, or the injecting of an illegal drug (Pearman, 1998).

Children are not aware of the health risks that drugs will have on them. Young people have the desire to experiment and it is in their nature to test and try new experiences. They also tend to push against existing boundaries. However, research shows that if young people think it is normal to use drugs, drug use will increase, and if they see health risks and perceive a social risk, then drug use will decrease (Pearman, 1998).

References

Brown, R.G. (Ed.). (1980). Children Australia. Sydney: George Allen & Unwin.

Pearman, J. (1998). Australia's Harm Reduction Policy A Failure (Online). Available: http://www.drugwatch.org

The sixth biennial health report of the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Australia's Health. Available:http://www.amasa.org.au/information.html

This page was written by Demah Esmail and co-authored by Shana Cohen, Amy Markus and Rachel Meisel as a part of our Children in Australia website.
We created this page as a collaborative project for our Children & Society class at Tulane University.
The purpose was to discover the current standard of living for children in Australia. We explored various aspects such as health, education, culture, government, and Aboriginal versus Non-Aboriginal children. Our classmates explored other countries around the world and found similiar information pertaining to their countries.

December 18, 1998