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Explore the economic, health, and social impacts of obesity, its measurement, leading causes of death, economic costs, and the paradoxical advantages of storing fat. Discover the direct and indirect economic costs of obesity, lifetime medical expenses, and preventative measures. Uncover the complex relationship between obesity, food technology, and non-economic factors influencing weight gain. Delve into societal behaviors, such as eating habits, income disparities, and the role of government intervention in combating obesity and promoting healthier lifestyles.
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Obesity The Economics of an Epidemic
Outline • Basic Facts • Health Effects • Economic Costs (Direct and Indirect) • Model Problem • Economic vs Non-Economic Reasons • Gov’t Intervention?
Measuring Obesity • Body Mass Index (BMI) • Underweight = <18.5 • Normal weight = 18.5-24.9 • Overweight = 25-29.9 • Obesity = BMI of 30 or greater
Problems with being Overweight • Hypertension • Dyslipidemia (for example, high total cholesterol or high levels of triglycerides) • Type 2 diabetes • Coronary heart disease • Stroke • Gallbladder disease • Osteoarthritis • Sleep apnea and respiratory problems • Some cancers (endometrial, breast, and colon)
Number of deaths for leading causes of death • Heart disease: 652,091 • Cancer: 559,312 • Stroke (cerebrovascular diseases): 143,579 • Chronic lower respiratory diseases:130,933 • Accidents (unintentional injuries): 117,809 • Diabetes: 75,119 • Alzheimer's disease: 71,599 • Influenza/Pneumonia: 63,001 • Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome, and nephrosis (kidney disease): 43,901 • Septicemia (blood poisoning): 34,136
Number of Deaths from Obesity • Allison et al. 1999 • 280,000-325,000 • Mokdad et al. 2004 • 400,000 • Flegal et al. 2005 • 112,000
Paradoxical Effect of Overweight • Historical evolutionary advantages to efficiently storing fat. It is a buffer against disease and famine
Economic Costs • Around 10% of medical spending in US • More than cigarette smoking 147 billion in 2008 • Americans spend 33 Billion on weight reduction products
Economic Costs • Direct • are costs where money is actually exchanged • Indirect • are most often costs that measure productivity loss and represent the value of time
Direct • Average increase in annual medical expenditures is $732 per person • A total of 5.3% to 5.7% of total annual medical expenditures in the • United States when combining per person costs and prevalence • Government finances roughly half the costs attributable to obesity
Direct • Perhaps only 4.3% of lifetime costs (in the United States) when accounting for increased annual costs and premature mortalitySource: (2005). Annu Rev Public Health, 26, 239-57. • 147 Billion per year Finkelstein et. al. 2009 (similar to smoking) • 33 billion in weight loss aids. Rashad and Grossman 2004
Direct • “Across all payers, obese people had medical spending that was $1,429 greater than spending for normal-weight people in 2006.” • Finkelstein 2009 • The costs attributable to obesity are almost entirely a result of costs generated from treating the diseases that obesity promotes.
Lifetime Medical Costs of Obesity: Prevention No Cure for Increasing Health Expenditure • Although effective obesity prevention leads to a decrease in costs of obesity-related diseases, this decrease is offset by cost increases due to diseases unrelated to obesity in life-years gained. Obesity prevention may be an important and cost-effective way of improving public health, but it is not a cure for increasing health expenditures.
Indirect • How can we calculate indirect? • What are examples?
Indirect • Absenteeism • Presenteeism • Disability • Premature mortality • Workers’ compensation • Indirect costs ranged from $448.29 million ($204 per obese person) in Switzerland to $65.67 billion ($1627 per obese person) in the United States (33).
Basic model of Weight Gain • Calories In=Calories Out • Women: BMR = 655 + ( 4.35 x weight in pounds ) + ( 4.7 x height in inches ) - ( 4.7 x age in years ) • Men: BMR = 66 + ( 6.23 x weight in pounds ) + ( 12.7 x height in inches ) - ( 6.8 x age in year ) • Dynamic Equations (150 calories = 10 pounds in 233 days) • 3,500 calories = one pound
Food Technology • Price of food has fallen • Time cost of food prep has fallen more
Fattening of America • Since 1983 prices of “healthy foods” • Fresh fruits: 190% increase • Fresh vegetables: 144% increase • Fish: 100% increase • Dairy: 82% increase • And not so healthy foods… • Fats and oils: 70% increase • Sugars and sweets: 66% increase • Carbonated beverages: 32% increase
Non-Economic Reasons • Women Working • Medications • Changes to Cigarette Prices • Climate Control • Pollution • Sleeping Less
Obesity and Food Out • Supersize Me. • Anderson, M. L., & Matsa, D. A. Are Restaurants Really Supersizing America?
Obesity and Income • White women pay a 9% wage penalty for being obese. • Maternal employment and childhood obesity • Working mothers lead to obese children.
Economic Costs of Obesity and Health Insurance • The problems with not pricing insurance for weight risk. • This leads to non-optimal weights.
Government intervention and regulation in food • South LA • Transfats • Ag subsidies. • Import quotas on sugar.