What costs more in the medical field, obesity or smoking?

April 23, 2012

Test Your Knowledge Answer #622

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Correct answer: Obesity

Obesity adds more to health care costs than smoking does, reports a study in

the March Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, official

publication of the American College of Occupational and Environmental

Medicine (ACOEM).

P. Moriarty, MSc, and colleagues of the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn.,

analyzed the incremental (additional) costs of smoking and obesity among

more than 30,000 Mayo Clinic employees and retirees. All had continuous

health insurance coverage between 2001 and 2007.

Both obesity and smoking were associated with excess costs for health care.

Compared to nonsmokers, average health costs were $1,275 higher for smokers.

The incremental costs associated with obesity were even higher: $1,850 more

than for normal-weight individuals. For those with morbid obesity, the

excess costs were up to $5,500 per year.

The additional costs associated with obesity appeared lower after adjustment

for other accompanying health problems (co morbidity). " This may lead to

underestimation of the true incremental costs, since obesity is a risk

factor for developing chronic conditions, " Moriarty and colleagues write.

Smoking and obesity place a growing strain on an already stretched

healthcare system. Employers are evaluating wellness programs -- such as

quit-smoking and fitness programs -- in an attempt to lower costs by

reducing health risk factors.

Moriarty and coauthors conclude, " Simultaneous estimates of incremental

costs of smoking and obesity show that these factors appear to act as

independent multiplicative factors. " Their study provides new insights into

the long-term costs of obesity and smoking, showing that both risk factors

lead to persistently higher health costs throughout a seven-year follow-up

period.

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