The personal cost of obesity

[Neal Winkler]

SOURCE: http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/li ... st.art.htm

Researchers calculate the real cost of being obese

And it's much more than simply being overweight

Obesity puts a drag on the wallet as well as your health, especially for women.

Doctors have long known medical bills are higher for the obese in the USA, but that's only part of the real-life cost.

George Washington University researchers added in things such as sick days, lost productivity, even the need for extra gasoline — and found the annual cost of being obese is $4,879 for a woman and $2,646 for a man.

That is far more than the cost of being merely overweight — $524 for women and $432 for men, finds the report, released Tuesday, which analyzed previously published studies to come up with a total.

Two-thirds of Americans are either overweight or obese, and childhood obesity has tripled in the past three decades. Nearly 18% of teens are obese, facing diabetes, heart disease and other ailments.

Why the cost differential between genders? Large women earn less than slim ones, studies suggest. Wages don't differ for obese men.

Researchers had expected everybody's wages to suffer with obesity, but "this indicates you're not that disadvantaged as a guy," says co-author Christine Ferguson.

While obesity is linked to earlier death, that's not usually considered a cost issue. But the report averaged in the economic value of lost life, bringing women's annual costs to $8,365, men's to $6,518.

The report was financed by a maker of gastric banding, used in a type of obesity surgery.

— The Associated Press

That's interesting that the discrepancy between obese and overweight is so large.

Actually, the annual cost of being simply overweight is so small that it may not be worth it to try and lose weight under many circumstances. After you factor in a gym membership and maybe higher food costs from eating more whole food, plus the value of your lost time from having to exercise, then it's not so clear that moving from overweight to normal weight is beneficial.

Some caveats to that is I don't know if the numbers they gave for overweight factor in the value of lost life, and the BIG intangible is the desire to be attractive to potential mates and spouses which is something that is highly valued. The value of attractiveness in securing higher status mates is so high that it probably tips the scales in favor of losing weight very easily.

[Newguy]

I would not be obese or even overweight if someone paid me to I am currently enjoy the ornamental (As coach would say ) side effects of gymnastics. And the funny thing is that is not even the main reason why I train. Sides gymnastics is just way to much fun

Dear gymnastics, I love you.

Sincerely,

The Newguy

[JL]

Not that I have ever sat around crunching numbers and reviewing financial variables, but I have to believe the economic cost of obese people is really less. The shorter your lifespan, the less money social security must pay out over time, and the less amount of time you will suck funds from medicare and medicaid. It may cost the individual more, but as for being a financial burden on society, I'm not so sure. I can see earlier death relating to lower lifetime income, and increased cost of prescription drugs to offset diabetes (type II) and heart disease leading to lost income. However, the need for more drugs just creates more jobs in the pharmacy industry.

I think the real toll it takes on society is in quality of daily living. A more active society is generally a happier society.