Weight loss can obviously make a big difference when it comes to your health, but did you know it could also impact your finances as well? It turns out losing weight can save you an immense amount of money over your lifetime (as much as $36,278!), and not just due to insurance savings.
According to a new study published in Obesity, multiple factors are at play when calculating the impact of weight loss on finances, mainly medical costs associated with obesity (think higher risk of health issues like diabetes and heart disease) and loss of productivity at work due to weight.
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The research was conducted using a computer model to symbolize the U.S. adult population in three different weight classes: normal weight, overweight, and obese, ages 20 to 80. The findings discovered that as one person changed weight categories, a major cost difference occurred.
For example, it was determined that if a 40-year-old goes from obese to overweight, they save an average of $18,262, but if that same person goes from obese to a healthy weight, they save about $31,447. Essentially, the more drastic your weight loss, the higher your savings are.
Hopefully, these findings will motivate people who desire to lose weight to finally follow through with it, especially because health benefits aren’t always enough of an incentive for people to get healthy. “Everyone is interested in trying to save money and maximize what they can do with their salary,” lead author says Bruce Y. Lee, MD, executive director of the Global Obesity Prevention Center at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, told Health Magazine. “And this study suggests one way they can do that.”
