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Counting what matters: Rethinking Aotearoa's population statistics without a census
… meet. It then reviews plans 2 3 for a shift away from a 5-yearly Census to the use of administrative data instead. We … of such importance in public life in Aotearoa New Zealand as now. Population data are essential to know the different … and variable, making national population projections as they are now done, out of date very quickly. Industrial …
Briefing
Increasing speed limits defies the science - more deaths and pollution expected
… (DSIs) are much higher at increased speeds, primarily as a result of increased stopping distances . Broadly … The optimum speed for minimising emissions is 60-80 km/h. 5 ‘Aggressive driving’ (speeding, rapid acceleration and … especially among children, it brings “ wider benefits such as less pollution and stronger communities ”. He added that …
Briefing
Action needed to halt New Zealand’s obesity epidemic: Themes from Big Food Symposium
… need to focus on upstream policies to prevent obesity as well. Evidence-based policy options identified include: … cost is even higher. Child obesity rates were highlighted as of particular concern with a third of NZ children having … of 16 introduction of a fizzy drink tax in New Zealand , as already in place in countries such as France, easy to …
Briefing
Health system costs in NZ: variation by sex, age & proximity to death
… 10-fold from $535 for 10–14 year olds (sexes combined) to $5,600 for 85–89 year olds. The rapid increase in costs starts … obviously, suggests that the health system costs increase as a results of increase in burden of disease (Fig 1). Fig 1: … by age Variation in the “last year of life” costs is not as large as for “regardless of proximity to death” costs. The …
Briefing
Casting a long shadow: Infection drives stomach cancer inequalities in Māori and Pacific peoples
… people have 3 to 6 times the rates of stomach cancer as NZ Europeans. These are some of the starkest relative … occurred in Māori and Pacific people at the same incidence as in European/Other. The majority of these deaths are … subsequently recognised as a driver of ethnic differences (5). However, much attention has been given to a genetic risk …
Briefing
The 5000 annual deaths caused by smoking also matter
… deception of the US public became a matter of record. 4,5 Nonetheless, the evidence tobacco companies had … with Winston Peters reportedly describing smoking as a “freedom of choice” issue. But how valid is this … smoke. 8 Most people who smoke became addicted to nicotine as teenagers , often in response to industry marketing, 9 …
Briefing
New Zealand can lead the world in tobacco control: Plain packaging 2.0
… imagery appeals to young people and positions smoking as an accepted, even aspirational, behaviour (1-3). Results … contributions to reductions in smoking prevalence, as predicted (8). Furthermore, our recent work has estimated … that plain packaging would have a similar overall effect as a five percent price increase from a tobacco excise tax …
Briefing
Climate Change and Recent Actions of NZ Political Parties
… and economic case for this investment being very strong [5] [6]). Indeed, the net impact of National Party activity in … was poor overall from a climate response perspective as they didn’t fix the most critical measure: ensuring an … on emission reduction with its focus on such areas as road building, extending subsidies to the aluminium …
Briefing
NZ compares well with other OECD countries in health & other areas: But scope for improvements
… Zealand performs exceptionally well in overall well-being, as shown by the fact that it ranks among the top countries in … good in NZ (and people seem to be generally happy with it as detailed above), a question about the quality of rivers … areas to catch up with the OECD leaders. Some ideas are as follows: Obesity prevention and control is where large …
Briefing
Promoting physical activity through the prescription of smartphone apps in primary care: Likely to produce health gains and cost-savings
… shifts that support more walking and cycling, as these are likely to generate much larger health gains and … being among the leading causes of health loss in NZ [5]. Furthermore, these noncommunicable diseases contribute to … a primary care visit is a feasible intervention in NZ, as some general practitioners (GPs) already “prescribe” …
Briefing

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