 Source: University of Michigan Health and Retirement Study |
Middle-aged women who are obese may be burdened with more than extra pounds. According to findings presented on Sunday in Washington, D.C. at the annual meeting of the Gerontological Society of America, the economic cost of obesity is high: obese women have significantly lower net worths than their non-obese peers. The new study is one of the first to focus on the effects of obesity on mature people, rather than young adults.
Social scientist Nancy H. Fultz of the University of Michigan and her colleagues analyzed data from upwards of 7,000 men and women in their 50s and 60s. Whereas the effects of obesity were statistically insignificant for men, the economic effects for women considerable (see chart at right). The data showed that in 1992 a moderately to severely obese woman between the ages of 51 and 61 had a net worth that was 40 percent less than that of a non-obese woman. By 1998 the divide had expanded. That data showed that the net worth of an obese woman between the ages of 57 and 67 was 60 percent less than that of her slimmer peers. These differences persisted even after controlling for health, marital status and other demographic factors. "That an effect of obesity on net worth remains even when we consider these other factors is consistent with the notion that obesity is economically burdensome for women," the researchers conclude. "This may be due to cultural norms of attractiveness, which stigmatize obese women in a variety of ways."
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Add CommentObesity does cost us a great deal and in more ways than we may imagine. Obesity not just ravages our natural and industrial resources in an rapidly growing world population, but it also and perhaps more importantly speaks of social and family psychology and sociology and personal moral and self satisfaction. Aspects that seldom get spoken about in lieu of the very useful yet questionably effective medical and scientific aspect.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisSo many times we have heard the very valid observation, that mom is substituting parental love or attention, with eating at the fast food place or with food and candies at home. The classical American film of the overweight girl at high-school who eats her loneliness away when all the pretty jock girls get studly muscleishous dates with the boys.
Though we have mocked these stereotypical after school movie commentaries in Hollywood films about winners versus losers, it seems that it has done little more than dull our motivation creating a complacent acceptance of obesity in our society and only left us watching how the problem extended to countries beyond the shores of fitness crazed Californian coasts.
The question at hand is thus, do we want to find a cure for a problem we don’t care to deal with and dedicate our medical field to a problem that should not exist in our abundant world, stealing precious medical resources from advancing towards curing the more challenging biological quagmires of our relationship with the biosphere, or do we want to look at the real reasons obesity has occurred throughout the ages?
Let’s ask ourselves the following two more important questions then. When does obesity really occur? And, how much is the medical study of it simply focusing on the way the body has to bounce back to it’s minimally preferred weight?
Some issues to consider in answering the above questions: Am I trusted by society and friends? Am I given the responsibility and autonomy that nurtures my sense of purpose and self esteem? Does my life consist of buying and spending more than creating and studying? Do I have an active, socially inclusive happy sexuality or intimate relationship with my opposite sex? Do I build in the world more that I use the world? Do I communicate and talk freely, express myself, and am heard by others in my own cultural language? Is there enough love in my life? Is there a sense of maturity in my roll with my family? Am I dedicating my self with love and skill to my job, artistry or education? Am I sought and called by friends to gather and do things? The point is simple, it seems that obesity has everything to do with a sense of satisfaction, optimism, peace and belonging amongst others. It wouldn’t be the first time that scientists or doctors have equated materialism and capitalism to fat.
Then there is the good news. The body and the mind, subconsciously doesn’t really want to be over-weight. Yet contrary to some cheeky suggestions, having a lot of sex is not the answer to helping the body regain its preferred lightness of being. Being involved, and caring is though. I have found that good old fashion thinking about what you eat and maintaining an physically active life does the trick in feeling better about this too often scalie situation. However if we want to be serious about maintaining our weight loss, and making it an issue of the past, there are countless wise doctors that have laid down excellent book recepies for doing so, blood type diets, carbs vs protein, zone aiming diets and hundreds more, and they all involve caring and getting involved in nutrition. Ironically the best way to leave behind the gut bulge is eating, and giving your cells good holistic varied nutrition which to keep your body happy and anatomically satiated. If you combine this with a happy, peacefull and fulfilling social life and decent appropriate physical activity, I believe you will have a good chance at turning the capitalist in your thyroid to a person who will be able to teach others the culinary delicious inventions of a new specialty. Cooking for today’s world.