Overweight? Getting to retirement is going to be hard!

I came across a Dec 2nd copy of the New York Times at the gym this morning and was curious how I missed this story. In the business section is an article called "Extra Weight, Higher Costs" that talks through a study attempting to correlate weight and net worth. It's an interesting premise. Before creating this post, I searched around and it appears a few other bloggers have already written about it, but that won't keep me from chiming in on it.

The article can be boiled down to a few core points:

1. People with normal BMIs (Body Mass Index) earn more money than who are considered overweight or obese
   
2. People with normal BMIs accumulate more in net worth
   
3. People with normal BMIs inherit more than their overweight counterparts.
4. Further, people with normal BMIs spend less on health care.

Wow. So not only do overweight people earn less, accumulate less and inherit less, but they also pay substantially more in health care costs. I know this is all logical and such, but when you boil it down that way, and couple it with the fact that overweight people generally live shorter lives, how can anyone honestly look themselves in the mirror and not want to take immediate action to improve their overall weight and health.

My favorite quote in article:

"...a unique twist on the calculations to determine what “supersizing” a fast-food meal costs society. Paying 67 cents to supersize an order — 73 percent more calories for 17 percent more money — adds an average of 36 grams of adipose tissue. The future medical costs for that bargain would be $6.64 for an obese man and $3.46 for an obese woman. “The hidden financial costs associated with weight gain from upsizing a value meal may help convince people it is not a bargain..."

Being overweight is hard and the battle to lose weight is hard. Keep up the battle, if not to save extra money, at least keep up the battle to save your longer-term health. Oh, and if you haven't seen this movie yet, go see it.