Controlling Obesity Will Save Over Half a Trillion Dollars
With the tobacco problem on the back burner, diet and obesity are coming into the cross hairs as a focus for public health. Controlling the rise in obesity, promoting quality of life, whilst saving on public healthcare costs is clearly an admirable goal. It is unfortunate that the body’s genetic makeup from our prehistoric existence urges it to store large amounts of fat, but the ramifications for health and subsequent health care costs are clear.
Research from Duke University, RTI International and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicates that an additional 32 million more obese people are likely to become a burden not only to themselves but to the heathcare system. The study is entitled Obesity and Severe Obesity Forecasts through 2030 and is available online at: ajpmonline.org
Lead author Eric Finkelstein, PhD, associate research professor in the Duke Global Health Institute, as well as deputy director in the Health Services Research Program at Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School in Singapore summarizes the study by stating that :
“Keeping obesity rates level could yield a savings of nearly $550 billion in medical expenditures over the next two decades.”