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10 insights into health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples for 2022–23

Media Release
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Released
26/11/2024
Source
National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Survey, 2022-23 financial year
  • 41 per cent of households experienced food insecurity due to not having enough money for food at some time in the 12 months before the survey.
  • Fewer than one in three people aged 15 years and over (29 per cent) smoked daily – down from 37 per cent in 2018–19.
  • 44 per cent of current smokers aged 15 years and over had tried to quit smoking in the last 12 months – down from 51 per cent of smokers who had tried to quit in 2018–19.
  • 8 per cent of people aged 15 years and over reported currently using an e-cigarette or vaping device.
  • 74 per cent of people aged 18 years and over were at higher risk of developing chronic diseases based on their waist circumference – about the same as in 2018–19 (71 per cent).
  • Around one in three people aged 18 years and over living in non-remote areas (31 per cent) experienced high or very high levels of psychological distress in the four weeks before the survey, compared with about one in four people living in remote areas (24 per cent).
  • 4 per cent of people had heart, stroke and vascular disease – down from 5 per cent in 2018–19.
  • Almost five in ten people aged 2 years and over living in non-remote areas (47 per cent) had seen a dentist in the last 12 months, compared with 37 per cent of people living in remote areas.
  • 37 per cent of people aged 15 years and over who used the internet in the three months before the survey had used it to access health services.
  • 70 per cent of people living in remote areas had seen a general practitioner (GP) who was part of an Aboriginal Medical Service or community clinic, compared with 22 per cent of people in non-remote areas.
  1. Denominator includes households for which food security status is not known.

More information can be found in the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Survey, 2022–23.

Media notes

  • Households were classified as food secure or food insecure based on whether one or more members of the household had enough food, or money to buy the food, needed for an active, healthy life at all times in the last 12 months. The food security status assigned to a household may not reflect the experience of each individual within the household. The specific experiences of children in the household do not form part of this measure. 
  • Non-remote and remote areas are based on the remoteness structures published in the Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS) Edition 3. Non-remote areas are Major Cities, Inner Regional and Outer Regional Remoteness Areas (combined). Remote areas are Remote and Very Remote Remoteness Areas (combined).
  • Smokers do not include people who use e-cigarettes or vaping devices.
  • When reporting ABS data you must attribute the Australian Bureau of Statistics (or the ABS) as the source.
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