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Study: Obesity Will Decrease Life Span in U.S.

Posted on: Friday, 18 March 2005, 18:00 CST

BLOOMINGTON -- Even if a national study being released today is overly simplistic, it's message is unmistakable: Americans are paying the price for being fat, and the cost will only increase unless they lose weight.

"Obesity is a huge, big problem in the United States and it's going to get worse unless we do something about it," said Dr. Paul Pedersen, an internist with OSF Medical Group.

Pedersen and Dave Thomas, Illinois State University professor of exercise science, reacted Wednesday to news reports of a study that will be released today.

The study concluded that within 50 years, obesity will shorten the average American's life span of 77.6 years by at least two to five years, Associated Press reported.

That's noteworthy because it would reverse the steady increase in American life expectancy that has occurred for two centuries.

Thomas, who is leading a program to reduce obesity in 10 Illinois communities, said the conclusion appears exaggerated and simplistic because it doesn't consider future medical advances that could help to extend life. Pedersen said he couldn't address the quality of the study.

But no one can deny that more people are overweight and that's leading to an increase in diabetes -- even among young people -- which eventually will result in more cardiovascular disease and cancer, they said.

"This issue is important and deserves more attention and action than it's getting," Thomas said.

With two-thirds of adults classified as overweight and one-third as obese, Thomas said obesity may cost society more than smoking.

Diabetes and cardiovascular diseases may be controlled by medicine and surgeries but newer medicine and procedures will be more expensive.

"If we think health care is expensive now, imagine if we begin to experience degenerative diseases in our 20s and 30s," Thomas said.

"People may be taking four or five pills to control disease processes that could be controlled with 50 pounds of weight loss," Pedersen said.

And being overweight and taking medicine for years to battle degenerative diseases will result in a "horrendous" quality of life, Pedersen said.

"So, even if people do live longer, their life will be miserable and costly. Is that what people really want?" he asked.

Eventually, society may force a healthier lifestyle through health-insurance rates and ultimatums in the workplace, Pedersen said.

He wants people to focus on eating less. "It's not so much the type of food we eat, it's the amount," he said.

Thomas encourages people to eat healthier and to be more physically active by fitting more movement into their daily life.

Architects should design buildings that encourage use of stairs rather than elevators. And community leaders should plan developments that are neighborhoods with sidewalks, parks and stores that encourage people to walk and ride their bikes rather than drive, Thomas said.

Source: Pantagraph

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