Epidemic of Aboriginal Child Illness

Australia's reputation as the healthy "lucky country" was dealt a blow yesterday when doctors warned of a growing epidemic of malnutrition among Aboriginal children.

In the past decade, the number of indigenous children turning up at Northern Territory hospitals with malnutrition has increased by more than 25%. Last year the figure was more than 1,100 out of a total indigenous population in the territory of about 50,000.

The research, compiled by Professor David Brewster of the Royal Darwin hospital, showed that bronchiectasis, a debilitating lung condition which affects just one in 2,000 Australian children as a whole, strikes one in every 40 Aboriginal children.

Part of the problem is that some rural Aboriginal communities are extremely remote, with floods cutting off townships from road transport for months during the wet season.

The Australian bureau of statistics released further figures yesterday showing that one in 20 Aborigines had diabetes - more than three times the rate for other Australians.