Consumption In Australia Research Articles

Usual intake of meat in Australians: secondary analysis of the 2011-12 National Nutrition and Physical Activity Survey using the NCI method.

Global public health recommendations advise limiting the intake of red and processed meats. There is a need for more comprehensive information on meat consumption in Australia, specifically usual intake of meat from a nationally representative sample. The aim of this study was to use the National Cancer Institute (NCI) method to examine usual meat intakes in the 2011-12 National Nutrition and Physical Activity Survey (NNPAS). This was a secondary analysis of the cross-sectional 2011-12 NNPAS, which contains observations for 12153 respondents (9341 adults and 2812 children/adolescents). Usual consumption of all meat, red and processed meats was calculated using the NCI method. Consumption of meat was explored by age and gender groups, as well as by household type. Amongst adults and children/adolescents, consumption of all meat was significantly higher in males (adults: 187.1g day-1 ; children/adolescents: 125.0g day-1 ) than females (adults: 125.5g day-1 ; children/adolescents: 95.4g day-1 ). Similar patterns were observed for red (males: adults 85.5g day-1 , children/adolescents 42.9g day-1 ; females: adults 57.1g day-1 , children/adolescents 34.9g day-1 ) and processed meat, although intakes of processed meats in children and adolescents (males: 26.5g day-1 ; females: 16.8g day-1 ) were found to be similar to those of adults aged ≥19years (males: 28.3g day-1 ; females: 15.3g day-1 ). Patterns of meat consumption across household types appeared to differ between genders. The present study suggests that Australians are likely to be exceeding population recommendations for meat intakes, with differing patterns observed across gender and household types. These findings highlight a need for targeted dietetic and population strategies aimed at promoting a healthy consumption of meats within the Australian population.

Nut consumption in a representative survey of Australians: a secondary analysis of the 2011-2012 National Nutrition and Physical Activity Survey.

Nut consumption is associated with a range of health benefits. The current study aimed to examine nut consumption in the 2011-2012 National Nutrition and Physical Activity Survey (NNPAS) and to investigate associations between nut intake, nutrient intake and anthropometric and blood pressure measurements. Secondary analysis of the 2011-2012 NNPAS. Usual consumption of nuts in the 2011-2012 NNPAS was determined, and nut consumption was compared with population recommendations of 30 g nuts per day. The relationship between nut consumption and intakes of key nutrients, anthropometric outcomes (weight, BMI and waist circumference) and blood pressure was examined using linear regression for participants aged over 18 years. Australia. Australians (2 years and older, n 12 153) participating in the representative 2011-2012 NNPAS. Mean nut intake was 4·61 (95 % CI: 4·36, 4·86) g/d, with only 5·6 % of nut consumers consuming 30 g of nuts per day. Nut consumption was associated with significantly greater intakes of fibre, vitamin E, Fe, Mg and P. There was no association between nut consumption and body weight, BMI, waist circumference, or blood pressure. Exploration of nut consumption in a representative sample of Australians identified that nut intake does not meet recommendations. Higher nut consumption was not adversely associated with higher body weight, aligning with the current evidence base. Given the current levels of nut consumption in Australia, strategies to increase nut intake to recommended levels are required.

Wealth and Consumption in Australia

AbstractWe revisit the evidence on the effect of changes in household wealth on consumption using a panel of Australian states. We find that a one per cent increase in the value of housing wealth increases consumption by about 0.16 per cent in the long‐run, with half of the response occurring within two quarters. The size of this response has been stable over time and largely reflects changes in spending on motor vehicles, durable goods and other discretionary items. We then run counterfactual scenarios using the Reserve Bank of Australia's macroeconometric model, MARTIN, to assess the macroeconomic effects of changes in household wealth. We show that increases in household wealth supported household spending between 2013 and 2017, when growth in disposable income was weak.

Asymmetric impact of energy consumption on environmental degradation: evidence from Australia, China, and USA.

The goal of this study is to examine the asymmetric impact of disaggregate energy consumption, i.e., oil, gas, coal, and electricity consumption on environmental degradation in Australia, China, and USA. The study uses annual time series data of three courtiers, i.e., Australia, China, and USA from 1975 to 2018 and applies nonlinear ARDL (NARDL) model to examine the long run and short run relationship. Results show that an increase in oil and coal consumption in Australia; oil, gas, and electricity consumption in China; and oil, coal, and gas consumption in USA leads to increase in the carbon dioxide emissions in the long run. However, a decrease in oil, gas, and electricity consumption in Australia; oil and electricity consumption in China; and coal, gas, and electricity consumption in USA reduces carbon dioxide emissions in the long run. Research and development centers are required to control pollution through new technologies, while to reduce emissions use renewable energy resources as a source of energy.

Estimation of the proportion of population cannabis consumption in Australia that is accounted for by daily users using Monte Carlo Simulation.

To estimate the proportion of cannabis consumed in Australia by daily cannabis users. Monte Carlo simulation using parameters estimated from nationally representative and repeated cross-sectional household surveys in 2007, 2010, 2013 and 2016. Australia PARTICIPANTS: Adult samples (mean age=49.9; 55% females) from four National Drug Strategy Household Surveys (n=92 243). Frequency of cannabis use (daily/weekly/about once a month/every few months/once or twice a year). The weighted estimated prevalence of users in each of these frequency levels was multiplied by population size to estimate the total number of users. Quantity of cannabis use was measured as number of joints consumed. The consumption of those who reported using bongs was converted into joints based on the bong to joint ratio estimated from the survey data. We estimated the proportion of cannabis consumed by daily users by Monte Carlo simulation using parameters estimated from the household surveys. We conducted 10 000 simulation trials, and in each trial we [1] simulated the number of users at each consumption level (stratum) based on estimated prevalence and population size[2], for each simulated individual, we simulated the number of days of cannabis use in a year based on frequency data[3], for each consumption day, we simulated the quantity consumed [4] and lastly we calculated the total joints consumed at each consumption level and estimated the proportion of joints consumed by daily users out of the total consumption. The prevalence of past-year cannabis use increased from 8.9% [95% confidence interval (CI)=8.5-9.4] in 2007 to 10.5% (95% CI=10.0-11.1) in 2016, 16% of whom were daily users. Between 2007 and 2016, daily users accounted for between 81.6 and 85.7% of all cannabis consumed. Weekly users accounted for an additional 12.1-15.9%. Between 2007 and 2016, only one in six Australian cannabis users were daily users, but they accounted for more than 80% of the estimated cannabis consumed in Australia.

Modelling the effects of alcohol pricing policies on alcohol consumption in subpopulations in Australia.

To model the effects of a range of alcohol pricing policies on alcohol consumption in subpopulation groups (e.g. alcohol consumption pattern, and age and income groups) in Australia. We used estimated price elasticities to model the effects of proposed pricing policies on consumption for 11 beverage categories among subpopulation groups. Australia. A total of 1789 adults (16+ years) who reported they purchased and consumed alcohol in the 2013 Australian International Alcohol Control Study, an adult population survey. Mean and percentage changes in alcohol consumption were estimated for each scenario across subgroups. The policy scenarios evaluated included: (1) increasing the excise rate 10% for all off-premise beverages; (2) replacing the wine equalization tax with a volumetric excise rate equal to the current spirits tax rate; (3) applying a uniform excise tax rate to all beverages equal to the current sprits tax rate and a 10 or 20% increase in it; and(4) introducing a minimum unit price (MUP) on all beverages categories at $1.00, 1.30 or 1.50. The effects of different tax and MUP policies varied greatly across different subgroups. The effects of the MUP policy on alcohol consumption increased rapidly in the range from $1.00 to $1.50. Applying a uniform tax rate across all beverages equal to current spirits tax rate, or a 10 or 20% increase beyond that, could generate large reductions in overall alcohol consumption in Australia. Compared with the uniform tax rate with or without further tax increase, introducing a MUP at $1.30 or $1.50 could reduce consumption particularly among harmful drinkers and lower-income drinkers, with comparatively smaller impacts on moderate and higher-income drinkers. Both uniform excise tax and minimum unit price policies are predicted to reduce alcohol consumption in Australia. Minimum unit price policies are predicted to have a greater impact on drinking among harmful drinkers than moderate drinkers.

Machine learning with parallel neural networks for analyzing and forecasting electricity demand

Traditional methods applied in electricity demand forecasting have been challenged by the course of dimensionality arisen with a growing number of distributed or decentralized energy systems are employing. Without manually operated data preprocessing, classic models are not well-calibrated for their robustness when dealing with the disruptive elements (e.g., demand changes in holidays and extreme weather). Based on the application of big data driven analytics, we propose a novel machine learning method originating from the parallel neural networks for robust monitoring and forecasting power demand to enhance supervisory control and data acquisition for new industrial tendency such as Industry 4.0 and Energy IoT. Through our approach, we generalize the implementation of machine learning by using classic feed-forward neural networks, for parallelization in order to let the proposed method achieve superior performance when dealing with high dimensionality and disruptiveness. With the high-frequency data of consumption in Australia from January 2009 to December 2015, the overall empirical results confirm that our proposed method performs significantly better for dynamic monitoring and forecasting of power demand comparing with the classic methods.

The bitter and the sweet: a cultural comparison of non-alcoholic beverage consumption in Japan and Australia

ABSTRACTThis article is part of a broader interdisciplinary project investigating the historical, social, and cultural contexts behind individual and collective differences in taste and consumption. It offers a comparative historical study of nonalcoholic beverage (NAB) consumption in Australia and Japan. Australia and Japan are among the largest NAB consumers in the world, and they have a similar history of progression from brewed tea as the main beverage consumed at meals and between meals, to a widespread consumption of bottled beverages. Yet in the contemporary context, both consumer behavior and its impact on nutrition health differ significantly in the two countries. We compare the Australian case, where “soft drinks” are equated with sugar-sweetened beverages, seen as contributing to the global rise in obesity, with thecase of Japan, where sugar-sweetened sodas are widely available, but people also consume large amounts of cold bottled green teas and herbal teas, that are not just “sugarless” but are not sweet at all. We propose that comparing the NAB consumption cultures of Japan and Australia offers us valuable insight into the importance of the cultural dimension of consumption and nutrition health, and the need to consider it when formulating policy.

Examining Australia's heaviest drinkers

ObjectiveThis study examined the distribution of alcohol consumption in Australia, identifying the heaviest drinking 10% of the population and examining their sociodemographic characteristics and their alcohol consumption and purchasing practices. MethodsData came from the 2016 National Drug Strategy Household Survey and the 2013 International Alcohol Control Study. The heaviest drinking 10% of the population identified based on estimates of annual alcohol consumption. Logistic regression was then used to assess the factors that distinguished these heaviest drinkers from the rest of the drinking population. ResultsThe heaviest drinking 10% of the population consumed 54.4% of all alcohol consumed. These heavy drinkers were more likely to be men and to live in regional and remote areas. They were more likely to drink cask wine and full‐strength beer and to purchase cheaper alcohol than other drinkers. ConclusionsAustralian alcohol consumption is heavily skewed. Alcohol consumption practices appear to differentiate the heaviest drinkers from others more clearly than sociodemographic factors. Implications for public healthPublic health interventions that reduce drinking among the heaviest 10% of drinkers in Australia have the potential to markedly reduce per‐capita consumption and reduce alcohol‐related harm. Interventions focused on cheap alcohol may be effective with these drinkers.

Assessing determinants of sustainable upgrade of existing buildings

PurposeEstimates show that close to 90% of the buildings we will need in 2050 are already built and occupied. The increase in the existing building stock has affected energy consumption thereby negatively impacting the environment. The purpose of this paper is to assess determinants of sustainable upgrade of existing buildings through the adoption and application of sustainable technologies. The study also ranks sustainable technologies adopted by the professionals who participated in the survey with an in-built case study.Design/methodology/approachAs part of the overall methodology, a detailed literature review on the nature and characteristics of sustainable upgrade and the sustainable technologies adopted was undertaken. A survey questionnaire with an in-built case study was designed to examine all the sustainable technologies adopted to improve energy consumption in Australia. The survey was administered to sustainability consultants, architects, quantity surveyors, facility managers and engineers in Australia.FindingsThe results show a total of 24 technologies which are mostly adopted to improve energy consumption in existing buildings. A factor analysis shows the main components as: lighting and automation, heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HAVC) systems and equipment, envelope, renewable energy and passive technologies.Originality/valueThe findings bridge the gap in the literature on the adoption and application of sustainable technologies to upgrade existing buildings. The technologies can be adopted to reduce the excessive energy consumption patterns in existing buildings.

Linking Production and Consumption: The Role for Fish and Seafood in a Healthy and Sustainable Australian Diet.

Fish and seafood consumption in Australia has been growing, yet the implications of this trend across the food system, from both a health and sustainability perspective have not been fully explored. This paper aims to map out the fish and seafood food system in Australia, linking production and consumption, to articulate challenges and opportunities for enhancing the sector’s contribution to future healthy and sustainable diets. We conducted a secondary analysis of publicly available datasets on fish and seafood production and consumption, triangulated and supplemented with peer-reviewed and grey literature on environmental, economic and social sustainability issues throughout the food system. A key challenge for health is the high proportion of fish and seafood consumed as discretionary food, particularly among children. Key challenges for sustainability include the narrow focus on environmental sustainability (with little consideration of the other domains), and the focus on production with little consideration for sustainability throughout post-harvest handling, processing, retail, distribution and consumption. Key opportunities for health and sustainability include the innovative use of processing and packaging technology to maximise nutritional quality; creation of markets and supply chains for a greater diversity of underutilised fish and seafood species and processing by-products; and reductions in waste and loss throughout the entire supply chain.

Celebrity Chefs and New Meat Consumption Norms: Seeking Questions, Not Answers

Celebrity Chefs and New Meat Consumption Norms: Seeking Questions, Not Answers

Animals Australia and the Challenges of Vegan Stereotyping

Animals Australia and the Challenges of Vegan Stereotyping

Testing for pre‐committed quantities of Australian meat demand

Pre‐committed consumption represents the portion of demand that is determined by non‐price and non‐income factors. This study uses quarterly data to estimate a Generalised Almost Ideal Demand System (GAIDS) to test for the existence of pre‐committed meat consumption in Australia. Two specifications are estimated to evaluate the impact of seasonal and time trend factors on pre‐committed demand. Evidence is found for the existence of pre‐committed chicken consumption when jointly estimated with seasonal and time trend factors. Results support improved demand modelling of Australian meat consumption using the GAIDS and provide insights into how Australian meat demand is affected by price, expenditures, pre‐committed consumption, seasonality, and trends.

The impact of reducing alcohol consumption in Australia: An estimate of the proportion of potentially avoidable cancers 2013-2037.

The International Agency for Research on Cancer first concluded that alcohol causes cancer in humans in 1988. The World Cancer Research Fund has declared that alcohol causes cancer of the oral cavity, pharynx, larynx, oesophagus (squamous cell carcinoma), female breast, colon, rectum, stomach and liver. It recommended that alcohol be avoided altogether to prevent cancer. We aimed to quantify the impact of reducing alcohol consumption on future cancer incidence in Australia. We used PREVENT 3.01 simulation modelling software to estimate the proportion of cancers that could potentially be prevented over a 25-year period under two hypothetical intervention scenarios and two latency periods (20 and 30 years). Under a scenario where alcohol consumption abruptly ceases, we estimated up to 4% of alcohol-related cancers could be avoided over a 25-year period (~49,500 cancers, depending on assumed latency). If the maximum consumption of all Australian adults was ≤20 g/day (~two Australian standard drinks), up to 2% of alcohol-related cancers could be avoided (~29,600 cancers). The maximum proportions were higher for men (6% for no alcohol consumption; 5% for ≤20 g/day) than women (3%; 1%). The proportion avoidable was highest for oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (17% no alcohol consumption; 9% ≤20 g/day), followed by cancers of the oral cavity (12%; 5%) and pharynx (11%; 5%). The cancer sites with the highest numbers of potentially avoidable cases were colon in men (11,500; 9,900) and breast in women (14,400; 4,100). Successful interventions to reduce alcohol intake could lead to significant reductions in cancer incidence.

Alcohol and breast cancer risk: Middle-aged women's logic and recommendations for reducing consumption in Australia.

BackgroundWe aimed to understand the factors shaping alcohol consumption patterns in middle-aged women (45–64), and to identify participant-driven population- and policy-level strategies that may be used to addresses alcohol consumption and reduce breast cancer risk.MethodsSemi-structured interviews (n = 35) were conducted with ‘middle-aged’ women conversant in English and living in South Australia with no history of breast cancer diagnosis. Data were deductively coded using a co-developed framework including variables relevant to our study objectives. Women were asked about their current level of awareness of the association between alcohol and breast cancer risk, and their personal recommendations for how to decrease consumption in middle-aged Australian women.ResultsWomen discussed their previous efforts to decrease consumption, which we drew on to identify preliminary recommendations for consumption reduction. We identified a low level of awareness of alcohol and breast cancer risk, and confusion related to alcohol as a risk for breast cancer, but not always causing breast cancer. Participants suggested that education and awareness, through various means, may help to reduce consumption.ConclusionsParticipants’ description of strategies used to reduce their own consumption lead us to suggest that campaigns might focus on the more salient and immediate effects of alcohol (e.g. on physical appearance and mental health) rather than longer-term consequences. Critical considerations for messaging include addressing the personal, physical and social pleasures that alcohol provides, and how these may differ across socio-demographics.

Patterns in Reduction or Cessation of Drinking in Australia (2001-2013) and Motivation for Change.

This paper examines: (a) change over time (2001-2013) in recently reducing or ceasing drinking in the Australian population and (b) the reasons given for reducing or ceasing drinking in the most recent survey (2013); stratified by sex and age group. Rates of reducing and ceasing drinking increased between 2001 and 2013 in Australia. Young people were more likely to modify drinking due to lifestyle and enjoyment reasons; older groups were more likely to report health reasons. These trends contribute to the broader context of declining alcohol consumption in Australia. Data are from five waves of the National Drug Strategy Household Survey (N = 119,397). Logistic regression models with interaction terms were used to identify a shift in sex or age over time in predicting reduction or cessation of drinking and to predict motivations for reducing or ceasing drinking by sex and age. Reports of recently reducing the quantity or frequency of drinking increased from 2001 to 2007 and remained stable between 2007 and 2013. There was a steady increase in the number of Australians reporting recently ceasing drinking from 2001 to 2013, with a significant effect for age (younger groups more likely than older groups to cease drinking in the past two waves). Reasons for reducing or ceasing drinking varied by age, with older people more likely to report health reasons and younger people more likely to report lifestyle reasons or enjoyment. Increases over time in reports of reduction or cessation of drinking due to health, lifestyle, social and enjoyment reasons suggest that the social position of alcohol in Australia may be shifting, particularly among young people.

Australian Consumers' Awareness and Acceptance of Insects as Food.

Insects have long been consumed as part of the diets of many Asian, African, and South American cultures. However, despite international agencies such as the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations advocating the nutritional, environmental, and economic benefits of entomophagy, attitudinal barriers persist in Western societies. In Australia, the indigenous ‘bush tucker’ diet comprising witchetty grubs, honey ants, and Bogong moths is quite well known; however, in most Australian locales, the consumption of insects tends to occur only as a novelty. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the awareness and acceptance of insects as food. An online survey of 820 consumers found that 68% of participants had heard of entomophagy, but only 21% had previously eaten insects; witchetty grubs, ants, grasshoppers, and crickets were the most commonly tasted insects. Taste, appearance, safety, and quality were identified as the factors that were most likely to influence consumer willingness to try eating insects, but consumer attitudes towards entomophagy were underpinned by both food neophobia (i.e., reluctance to eat new or novel foods) and prior consumption of insects. Neophobic consumers were far less accepting of entomophagy than neophilic consumers, while consumers who had previously eaten insects were most accepting of insects as food. Incorporating insects into familiar products (e.g., biscuits) or cooked meals also improved their appeal. Collectively, these findings can be used by the food industry to devise production and/or marketing strategies that overcome barriers to insect consumption in Australia.

Ethnicity and cultural consumption in Australia

This paper explores the consequences of increasing ethnic diversity for practices of cultural consumption and the distribution of taste in Australia. Changing migration patterns and generational changes have produced a diversification of goods, sites and audiences, and an increasing transnationalization of practices and relations over several decades. Drawing on survey data from the Australian Cultural Fields project examining knowledge, taste and participation within a national sample and across several ethnically defined samples, the paper provides cautious insights into the complex relations between ethnicity and cultural consumption: around the distribution of ‘national’ cultural capital, attachment to the Western canon, the ethnic specificity of taste and the intersection with issues of class, recentness of arrival and generation in contemporary Australia. Finally, bearing in mind the problems of measuring both ethnicity and cultural consumption, the paper speculates on the implications of the data for recent claims about the recomposition of cultural capital.

Social marketing and community mobilisation to reduce underage alcohol consumption in Australia: A cluster randomised community trial

Background and aimsIn many countries adolescent alcohol use is a major health problem. To supplement national policies, it is important to trial community interventions as a potential strategy to prevent adolescent alcohol use. MethodsThis study evaluated a multicomponent community intervention that included community mobilisation, social marketing, and the monitoring of alcohol sales to minors. Evaluation was a clustered randomised trial design with 14 intervention and 14 control communities. Prior to randomisation, communities were matched on socioeconomic status and location. Intervention communities were not blinded. Participants3545 Year 8 students (M = 12 years) were surveyed at baseline from 75 schools; 3377 students were surveyed post intervention in 2013 from 54 schools. OutcomesIt was hypothesised that the primary outcome, individual alcohol consumption in last 30 days, after the intervention would be 15% lower in intervention communities. Secondary outcomes were consumption in the past year and intention not to drink before age 18. ResultsThe intervention communities showed larger relative reductions compared to the controls in last 30-day consumption and past year (10%), but not significantly different. A significantly lower proportion of participants in the intervention community (63%), compared to the controls (71%), reported intending to drink before 18 years old. Subgroup analysis identified regional and state differences for some secondary measures. ConclusionsIntervention assignment was associated with lower adolescent intention to drink before the age of 18. However, more intensive and longer-term intervention may be required to measure significant differences in behaviour change.Trial registration: ACTRN12612000384853.Protocol: Rowland B, Toumbourou JW, Osborn A, et al. BMJ Open 2013;3:e002423. doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2012-002423