Almost half of all Australians (11.6 million) have a chronic health condition and one in five are living with multiple conditions.
Two out of every three Australians are overweight or obese, and one in four children are overweight or obese.
This is the picture of the nation's health painted in the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare's latest Australia's health 2022 report card.
However, the report's authors say Australia is generally a healthy nation compared with similar countries, notwithstanding some well-known areas for improvement.
We are living longer - life expectancy at birth was 83.0 years in 2020, the sixth highest among the 38 OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) countries.
Males born in 2018-2020 can expect to live 81.2 years and females 85.3 years, up from 55.2 and 58.8 years, respectively, for those born in 1901-1910 and 73.9 and 80.1 in 1990.
"But with a population that is living longer, we are now experiencing higher rates of chronic and age-related conditions, such as dementia," said AIHW Deputy Chief Executive Officer Matthew James.
"For example, we know that older Australians use a higher proportion of hospital and other health services and 54 per cent of all subsidised medicines were dispensed to people aged 65 and over.
"Despite the number of Australians experiencing chronic health conditions, there have been marked improvements in many areas of health, including cancer survival, infant mortality, and deaths from coronary heart disease."
With a population that is living longer, we are now experiencing higher rates of chronic and age-related conditions, such as dementia.
- AIHW Deputy Chief Executive Matthew James.
In 2020, the leading causes of death for men were coronary heart disease, dementia including Alzheimer's disease, lung cancer, cerebrovascular disease and prostate cancer. For women it was dementia, including Alzheimer's disease, coronary heart disease cerebrovascular disease, lung cancer and breast cancer
Common chronic health conditions were heart disease, cancer, arthritis, asthma, diabetes, back problems, kidney disease and mental and behavioural issues.
Many chronic health conditions share preventable risk factors, such as smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, and not getting enough exercise - in fact, over one-third (38 per cent) of our nation's 'disease burden' is due to preventable risk factors.
Our expanding waistlines are responsible for 8.4 per cent of our total disease burden.
The coronary heart disease death rate which steadily increased throughout the first half of the 20th century has fallen from 1968 by 89 per cent (428 deaths per 100,000 to 49 per 100,000 in 2020) but remains the leading single cause of death for males and second leading for females.
Seven in 10 (70 per cent) people survived at least five years after a cancer diagnosis during 2014-2018 - an improvement from about 5 in 10 (52 per cent) in 1989-1993.
However, some population groups have different experiences of health than others. Generally, the higher a person's socioeconomic position, the better their health.
Australia's health 2022 also examines changes in the health of Australians throughout the pandemic.
Average life satisfaction for Australians fell substantially during the early stages of the pandemic (from 6.9 out of 10 in January 2020 to 6.5 in April 2020). However, by January 2021 the average level of life satisfaction had returned to pre-pandemic levels and this remained the case in April 2021.
The rate of severe disease from COVID-19 (ICU admission and/or death) was seven times higher for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people compared with the Australian population overall.
Following the release of the report, the Australian Chronic Disease Prevention Alliance - comprising the Heart Foundation, Cancer Council Australia, Kidney Health Australia, Diabetes Australia and Stroke Foundation - called on the Federal Government to respond by investing in the National Preventive Health Strategy and supporting actions that enable Australians to eat well and move more.
Unhealthy diets and overweight and obesity are major risk factors for heart attack, stroke, diabetes, chronic kidney disease, and certain cancers.
"The new report shows that many of us are overweight or obese, which puts us at risk of developing one or more chronic conditions," said Chris Forbes chairman of ACDPA and chief executive of Kidney Health Australia.
"A huge amount of chronic disease burden - nearly 40 percent - could be prevented by reducing risk factors like unhealthy diets, smoking, overweight and obesity, physical inactivity, alcohol consumption, and high blood pressure."
"The National Preventive Health Strategy was released last year with a focus on healthy eating and physical activity, but it needs funding to achieve real gains," said Mr Forbes.
"The new health report shows that deaths from chronic diseases were higher than expected in early 2022, while access to GP management plans for chronic conditions dipped during COVID-19 outbreaks and lockdowns.
"The pandemic has had an enormous impact on the health of Australians. Supporting Australians to reduce their risk of chronic disease would keep more of us healthy and out of hospitals at a time of great strain on our healthcare system. It really is a win-win," Mr Forbes said.
"Australia is lagging behind other Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries on reducing overweight and obesity, so we must do more to protect the future health and wellbeing of Australians."
Mr Forbes said, "In the meantime, we encourage people to visit the ACDPA website where we have some handy advice on how to reduce your risk of chronic disease."