Government action on diabetes prevention: time to try something new

Type 2 diabetes mellitus, driven by overweight and obesity linked to unhealthy diets, is the fastest-growing non-communicable disease in Australia. Halting the rise of diabetes will require a paradigm shift from personal to shared responsibility, with greater accountability from Australian governments and the food industry. It will also require governments to try something different to the prevailing approaches emphasising education and the provision of information. We propose four priority areas where government regulation could strengthen Australia's response. Those areas relate to mandatory front-of-pack food labelling, regulating junk food advertising, better oversight of food reformulation and taxing sugar-sweetened beverages.