A
new study says that there is little adverse association between being
overweight and living longer, aside from financial costs for the community.
Although the medical cost to the
community rises as more and more people become obese, a new study says there is
little adverse association between being overweight and living longer.
The increasing rates of obesity
and associated disability and illness mean greater financial costs for the
community. This expenditure is partly why obesity may have some effect on life
expectancy in the aged.
A study led by Australian and
Taiwanese researchers examined over 110,000 people for the effect of BMI (Body
Mass Index, regarded as a measure of obesity) on life expectancy and the
repercussions for health-care systems. The 12-year study included men and women
across all age groups.
The results of the research were
recently published in the Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition,
where the lead author is also the editor-in-chief. The study also included
researchers from the National Health Research Institutes, Taiwan and the
National Defense Medical Center, Taiwan.
“We found that especially in the
elderly, medical expenditure continues to rise with increasing BMI, but there
was little relationship with how long a person lived,” said Emeritus Professor
Mark Wahlqvist from Monash University’s Department of Epidemiology and
Preventive Medicine and the Monash Asia Institute.
One reason for this greater
expenditure is that, with age, excess weight is increasingly accompanied by
loss of muscle (sarcopenia) and bone (osteopenia or osteoporosis), with their
own health consequences.
“The study showed that to
maintain a favorable life expectancy for those who fall outside the desirable
BMI range, more money is being spent,” Wahlqvist said.
BMI indicates a relationship
between weight and height. The findings show that, if medical expenditure is to
be reduced, people must maintain their BMI in the lower end of the desirable
range between 18.5 and 24.
“To reduce the health burden, and
the associated medical expenditure by both individuals and governments, it is
important that people are encouraged to maintain a desirable BMI – and to do so
by inexpensive exercise as well as diet,” he said. “It also means greater
government effort for the well-being of ageing communities is needed.”
Wahlqvist said that the economic
impact for both individuals and society was a consequence not only of the
health costs of obesity but also of the effects it had on independent living,
workforce participation, and livelihoods.
“Another difficulty to be
actively addressed is that the socio-economically disadvantaged are at greater
risk of obesity in the first place,” Wahlqvist said.
“In times of international
financial crisis, vulnerability in the health system becomes more apparent.
This can be seen in those countries in the euro-zone with demanding terms for
debt alleviation, including cut-backs to health system funding.”
The article can be found
at: Wahlqvist ML et al. (2012)
Paradoxes with weight disorders for health systems.
Source: Monash
University;
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