The westside’s healthiest, laziest and most long-lived suburbs

Where you live in the westside can make a nine-year difference in how long you will live. Australian Bureau of Statistics data lifts the lid on our healthiest suburb — and the worst.

More than half of all westsiders admit to not getting much — or any — exercise. new figures reveal which are our healthiest suburbs. Picture: iStock

If you want a long life, move to Kenmore, Moggill or Brookfield.

That’s the message out of a new analysis of Australian Bureau of Statistics data on key health indicators.

Residents in those suburbs can expect to live to the ripe old age of 86.

But if you are from Auchenflower or Toowong, you can expect to live until only 77.

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The analysis found people in Chapel Hill, Kenmore and Fig Tree Pocket have taken smoking warnings to heart.

They have one of the lowest smoking rates in Queensland, if not Australia, at just 5.5 per cent.

But even in Auchenflower/Toowong, where you’re most likely to find locals having a puff, only 10.3 per cent are addicted to ciggies.

Chelmer and Graceville residents are the fattest in the westside, with almost one in every three (28.1 per cent) obese.

But in St Lucia, most people are trim and terrific. The obesity rate there is just 19.7 per cent, less than half the rate in Queensland’s fattest suburb, Redbank Plains.

Sadly, westsiders admit to being a pack of bludgers when it comes to exercising. Up to two-thirds of people in the west confess to getting little or no exercise.

Even in Ashgrove and Bardon — surprisingly the west’s second fattest suburbs — less than half of its residents bother to get off the couch and put in some cardio work.

And only half of the area’s residents bother to eat enough fruit, although they do love a tipple.

One in five people in Paddington admit to downing two or more drinks a day, a dangerous level for women.

Over in St Lucia, wine o’clock is less of a problem — only 13.7 per cent of locals admitted to knocking back two or more stiff drinks every day.

VITAL STATS, SUBURB BY SUBURB

Auchenflower/Toowong

Obesity 25.1%; Smoking 10.3%; more than two drinks/day 18.5%; little/no exercise 60.5%; eat fruit 55.15%; median age of death 77

Ashgrove/Bardon

Obesity 27.2%; Smoking 6.4%; more than two drinks/day 21.9; little/no exercise 54.1%; eat fruit 53.8%; median age of death 84

Chapel Hill/Kenmore/Fig Tree Pocket

Obesity 23.5%; Smoking 5.5%; more than two drinks/day 17.8%; little/no exercise 55.1%; eat fruit 55%; median age of death 82

Chelmer/Graceville/Corinda/Sherwood

Obesity 28.1%; Smoking 6.9%; more than two drinks/day 19.1%; little/no exercise 55.1%; eat fruit 55.3%; median age of death 84.5

Indooroopilly/Taringa

Obesity 24.3%; Smoking 8.9%; more than two drinks/day 16.8%; little/no exercise 57.8%; eat fruit 55.6%; median age of death 83.5

Kenmore/Brookfield/Moggill

Obesity 25.4%; Smoking 6%; more than two drinks/day 17.3%; little/no exercise 58.1%; eat fruit 55.2%; median age of death 86

Paddington/Milton/Red Hill

Obesity 26.5%; Smoking 9.5%; more than two drinks/day 21.6%; little/no exercise 58.9%; eat fruit 55.6%; median age of death 80

St Lucia

Obesity 19.7%; Smoking 9.9%; more than two drinks/day 13.7%; little/no exercise 63.2%; eat fruit 55.3%; median age of death 82

The Gap

Obesity 26.2%; Smoking 7.5%; more than two drinks/day 19.7%; little/no exercise 57.8%; eat fruit 50.8%; median age of death 84

Westsiders have heeded warnings not to smoke. Picture: istock

The stats were crunched by Torrens University, in Sydney, using data from the Public Health Information Development Unit (PHIDU).

Their analysis exposed massive differences in health outcomes depending on where a person lives and their social and economic status.

It showed the most disadvantaged Australians are likely to die 41 years younger than those with the highest median age of death.

Half the Australians who live in the indigenous APY lands in South Australia will die before they reach 48 years of age and this region has the nation’s worst median age of death.

Meanwhile half of those living in the upper middle class area of Ashburton on Melbourne- which boasts the nation’s highest median age of death – will live past the age of 89.

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The data showed the number of Australians who are overweight and obese is the highest on record and weight problems are also linked to social and economic status.

The most disturbing development is that the proportion of people who are normal weight has plummeted from 43.5 per cent of the population in 1995 to just 31.7 per cent in 2017-18.

Over the same time period the proportion of adults aged 18 years and over who were overweight or obese has increased from 56.2 per cent to 67 per cent.

The proportion of Australians categorised as obese has nearly doubled from 18.7 per cent in 1995 to 31.3 per cent in 2017–8.

Nationally, slightly more than one third (35.6 per cent) of Australians are now overweight and slightly less than one third are obese (31.3 per cent).

Just under one third (31.7 per cent) are within the healthy weight range and 1.3 per cent are underweight.