Introduction: Australia was one of the first counties to develop a national policy for the prevention and treatment of obesity in 1997 and there have been a number of subsequent obesity strategies produced by the national or state governments. We analysed the recommendations and tone of a range of Australian obesity policies to examine how the proposed recommended actions and the prevailing obesity narrative has changed over time.
Methods: A systematic search and the assistance of key informants allowed the identification of all major Australian policy documents that dealt specifically with obesity prevention or management between 1995 and 2022. Recommendations from 7 national and state obesity policies across this period were extracted and classified under key action areas. Bacchi’s “what is the problem represented to be'' (WPR) framework was utilised to identify prevailing obesity narratives within each report.
Results There was limited variability over time in the range of key action areas addressed by each report but there were improvements in the level of detail and sophistication of the recommendations presented in recent reports and more emphasis on environmental, and structural change. No reports contained a detailed evaluation strategy. There were noticeable changes in the prevailing narrative around the issue of obesity over the 25-year period with a shift away from a focus on individual behaviour to greater recognition to the broad biological and societal drivers of obesity, including the negative consequences of the stigmatisation of people living with obesity.
Conclusion: The finding that key action areas and specific recommendations have changed little over the past 25 years in Australian obesity policy documents suggest unsatisfactory implementation, monitoring and evaluation. However, there have been important changes in the narrative around the issue of obesity and how it is perceived that should create greater support for implementation of current policies.