Abstract
Obesity and diabetes are major health problems in the United States. The primary aim of this study is to examine the association between obesity and diabetes and to estimate the cost of diabetes linked to obesity in the Appalachian region. A system of simultaneous equations approach, and a logit estimation are employed for the analyses. Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) surveys for 2001 and 2009 are the main sources of data. Both county-level and individual-level data are used for the analyses. The simultaneous approach at county-level based on the changes of income, employment, obesity, and diabetes reveals that obesity increases diabetes, but diabetes does not have an effect on obesity. The counties with high initial levels of obesity had less obesity growth but more diabetes growth. Increasing income impacts negatively on diabetes growth. Logit analysis indicates that obesity significantly increases the risk of diabetes of adults’ in Appalachia. Besides, being employed, higher income, as well as engaging in exercise reduce the prevalence of diabetes, while age increases diabetes. The economic cost of obesity-related diabetes is $1.9 billion, and can be reduced through mitigating obesity.
Highlights
Obesity is a major health problem and nearly 34 percent of the US adult population are obese [1,2]
Results for the obesity change (OBEC) equation are shown in columns 6 and 7, and results for the diabetes change (DIAC) equation are presented in columns 8 and 9
The main purpose of this study was to examine the association between obesity and diabetes and to estimate the cost of diabetes linked to obesity in the Appalachian region
Summary
Obesity is a major health problem and nearly 34 percent of the US adult population are obese [1,2]. Obesity increases the risk of premature mortality [7] and is associated with nearly 300,000 annual deaths in the United States [5]. There are four major categories of the economic impacts associated with obesity: direct medical costs, productivity costs, transportation costs, and human capital costs [13]. According to the US Department of Health and Human Services [14], the annual cost of obesity was $147 billion in 2008 and people who were obese had annual medical costs that were $1429 higher than the cost for people of normal body weight. The overall annual cost of being obese is $2646 for an obese man and $4879 for an obese woman [3]
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