The Wire

On Thursday Island in the Far North of Queensland, warnings have emerged of a health crisis, which has halved the life expectancy of Torres Strait Islanders in just three generations. The Torres Strait and Northern Peninsula Health Council’s Ivy Trevallion says young Indigenous people are dying 25 years earlier than the general population, with an alarming rise in diabetes. Mrs Trevallion says a lack of access to nutritious food, the high cost of living and overcrowding are causing chronic diseases in epidemic proportions. The shortage of services is compounded by Papua New Guinean villagers from the Western Province, who utilise a treaty between nations to access health care in the Torres Strait.