Obesity and Inactivity Costs California $41 Billion

He sent the T-1000 to a molten grave, he killed a terrorising predator, he took down the snake cult, and he dealt with having made "Jingle all the Way".

But, the "Governator" now faces a truly insurmountable foe in the lifestyle of Californians, who are burdening businesses and taxpayers to the tune of $41 Billion.

Before we proceed, let's try and wrap our heads around that figure for just a minute. A billion is a lot, no question. But, if we think of this number in terms of time, a million seconds is about 12 days. A billion seconds is about 32 years. Digest away...

What could be worse than $41 billion in health care costs? How about 52.7 billion - the estimated cost in 2011 if the trend continues.

Here are is the story on these astounding numbers:

• 59 percent of Californians are obese or overweight, and 48 percent are physically inactive.
• Half the costs were attributed to health care expenses, and half to lost productivity, such as absenteeism.
• California is already dealing with a devastating $26.3 billion budget shortfall this fiscal year.
• These costs have doubled over the course of 6 years.
• To measure the economic toll of excess weight and inactivity, researchers analyzed records such as government-compiled databases, tracking health insurance claims, industry drug-utilization reports, Medi-Cal claims, and state and national surveys on rates of physical activity.
• Health care expenses were tallied through direct costs as well as "indirect costs," such as lingering health problems, and a reduced quality of life that affects a persons earning capacity.
• Productivity costs were assessed by analyzing rates of job absenteeism, short-term disability, and "presenteeism," or the portion of work an employee can't perform because of compromised health.

What the Experts Say

Harold Goldstein, executive director of the California Center for Public Health Advocacy, had the following to say about the crisis:

Every public health movement has shown that people can only be healthy if public policies are in place to support healthy choices, the national debate over health care reform needs to include prevention as a primary tactic for controlling costs... Make prevention and wellness the cornerstone of a new national health care system."

How Do We Fix This?

There is no easy answer to this one. Nothing short of a massive cultural shift, with everybody banding together to make healthy food more accessible, exercise more feasible, and educational programs to show people how to accomplish these things. Prevention is crucial. But, I think damage control is also necessary.

What do you think? Can Californians (and Americans, North Americans and other Westernized countries for that matter) reverse this trend? What will it take?