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Written by Dolores Akey
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Why is there a "war" on obesity? What are the real reasons of higher costs of medical care?
Have you looked around recently? In the United States overweight people are in the majority.
Not all overweight individuals are classified as obese, but being just a little overweight often results in the same prejudices and comments as being a lot overweight.
Obesity is the one area where people are encouraged to voice their prejudices. Currently, we are having a “war” on obesity. The reasons for this “war” have very little to do with the hype. Insurance companies
and the government work in concert to wage this war. The bottom line is money, but not the way you might think. High cost of medical care is often cited, yet the cost for thin people is often just as high.
Insurance companies need a scapegoat and along come obese people.
An obese woman in her prime is often found to be dieting. She loses and gains, loses and gains. Medically, this is dangerous because each time she loses she gains back more, and each yo-yo of weight adversely effects blood pressure and cholesterol levels. Recent studies indicate a better plan would be for obese people to develop some sort of exercise plan they enjoy and will continue to do for the long run. Usually, walking is recommended. It has been found walking for 10 minutes 3 times a day is just as good as walking 30 minutes once a day. Exercising three times a week is actually more beneficial than seven days a week. Doctors have found there are people who are overweight and fit.
Ah, ha, you say, that is not possible. Yes, doctors say, it is. If a person exercises regularly their body is fit despite the fact they may have extra pounds. You may have heard the expression Fit and Fat.
Recent studies indicate overweight people live longer than thin people. Also, overweight people tend to lose their weight once they reach their late sixties and early seventies, just because older people eat less.
Reasons for eating less usually relate to a loss in taste and often simple economics. Whatever the reasons,
people tend to become thinner the older they become.
So, you wonder, why then this war on obesity? Insurance companies profits are phenomenal. Insurance companies make the decision on how your doctor can treat you and with which medications. Even though the doctor was educated to know which medications work for which circumstances, the insurance company may deny the patient payment for the medication prescribed and suggest a substitute. If your income is high enough, you can override the decision by paying for the medication yourself. However, most of us cannot afford the prices the drug companies charge. The reason medical costs are so high is not because of the rise in obesity, but because of the rising cost of medical insurance and drugs. Some of the drugs can be made for a pittance of the price the consumer pays.
Since the HMO’s often govern how many people the doctor is to see in a day, doctor’s have had to raise their rates. Hospitals have become so expensive it is unreasonable. One person found a charge for an aspirin on their billing for $4.00. It is the padding of costs and the control the insurance companies hold over the medical professionals that drive the medical costs higher and higher. However, if you shine the light on a segment of society as the cause, people won’t look any deeper. At least that is the theory.
Obese people have been the brunt of jokes and rude comments. Now, there is a war against obesity, which only serves to increase the level of prejudice which already existed. Rather than advertising a war on obesity, we should be looking for ways to encourage exercise, such as senior playgrounds. This so called “war” has brought out all the weight loss gurus, pill producers with unreal promises of losing weight without effort. Millions are being made by the weight loss industry. Too bad, we haven’t been able to use all that money for more productive means of creating good health. We need to fight the real war against the producers of medications who overprice and the insurance industry who controls the cost of medical care, while controlling the care we receive.
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