Obesity costs U.S. $147 bln a year

BEIJING, July 28 (Xinhuanet) -- Obesity is not only dangerous to one's health, it's also costing the state dearly. New research published this week reveals that medical spending averages 1,400 U.S dollars more a year for an obese person than for someone whose weight is normal.

The study published Monday by the journal Health Affairs says that obesity related health spending in the United States has reached close to 147 billion dollars. The sum is twice that of a decade ago.

Diabetes, arthritis and heart disease are among the many ailments commonly associated with being overweight and the rising number of such conditions is draining financial and medical resources. "Unless you address obesity, you're never going to address rising health care costs," RTI International's health economist Eric Finkelstein said.

Around 70 percent of Americans are either obese or overweight, said Dr. Thomas Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. With the average American more than 12 kg overweight Frieden said that the situation could get much worse. "Obesity and with it diabetes are the only major health problems that are getting worse in this country, and they're getting worse rapidly," Frieden said Monday at the CDC's first major conference on the obesity crisis.

In an effort to alleviate the problem, the agency released a strategy last week which included a proposal to increase healthy foods and drinks in schools. The encouragement of breast-feeding and the building of supermarkets in poorer areas are also cited as measures necessary to fight America's growing obesity problem.

Consumption of carbonated drinks and other sweetened beverages should also be discouraged in order to cut the number of calories ingested by people every day. Frieden has even suggested taxing such beverages.

The study found obesity-related conditions now account for 9.1 percent of all medical spending, up from 6.5 percent in 1998. During that time, the obesity rate rose 37 percent.