Jackson Free Press

We're constantly reminded of the health risks of obesity and smoking, but have you ever stopped to consider the costs? Smokers and those who are overweight can accrue thousands of dollars in health-related expenditures throughout the course of their lifetimes. Mississippians, in particular, are in danger of accumulating extreme expenses due to the fact that in 2009, our state ranked No. 1 in rates of childhood and adult obesity in the United States and 45th in the nation of the percentage of the population that smokes. This spotlight on the costs of being overweight or a smoker may make people think twice about the price of their health.

Too Fat?
• A recent report by the POWER Initiative found that 9.1 percent of total U.S. annual medical expenditures are obesity-related.

• For Mississippians, diabetes, in particular, poses an immediate financial threat. Type 2 diabetes is a disease in which blood-sugar levels are above normal. In 2007, the Centers for Disease Control reported 88 percent of Mississippians with type 2 diabetes were either overweight or obese. And in 2008, 245,000 Mississippians were diagnosed with diabetes (a number that has more than doubled since 1994).

• A recent Harvard study found that health problems caused 62 percent of all personal bankruptcies in the U.S. in 2007, and 78 percent of those who filed bankruptcy had health insurance. Of those who filed for bankruptcy, individuals with diabetes faced an average of $26,971 in medical expenses. In 2009, more than 14,000 individuals in Mississippi filed for bankruptcy.

The good news: A small investment in your health could save you thousands of dollars down the road. By lowering your weight and increasing your physical activity, you can lower your risk for developing type 2 diabetes. The Diabetes Prevention Program found that lowering your body weight by 5 to 7 percent and doing 30 minutes of physical activity a day, five days a week, may prevent or delay the onset of type 2 diabetes.

Do You Smoke?
• Currently, 23.3 percent (506,000) of Mississippians smoke.

• A smoker in Mississippi spends an average of $4.50 on a pack of cigarettes. If you smoke a pack a day, you spend $31.50 per week, $126 per month, and $1,638 per year on cigarettes. The savings one could accumulate by not smoking can be just as eye-popping: if a 35-year-old quit smoking and put her savings into a 401(k) retirement plan that earns 9 percent a year, she could have saved almost $340,000 by age 70 (go to drcalculator.com to calculate your own savings).

• According to http://www.tobaccofreekids.org, Mississippians spend $719 million annually in smoking-related health-care costs.

• In 2006, death rates due to heart disease, the leading cause of death in the U.S. and the leading cause of death among smokers, were highest in Mississippi. American Heart Association spokeswoman Suzanne Folkes says nearly 10 percent of heart-disease patients eventually file for bankruptcy.

• Along with those who suffer from heart disease, lung cancer poses huge medical expenses. Lung-cancer patients spend an average of $39,891 in treatment, and in 2006, according to the CDC, for every 100,000 men in Mississippi, 110.4 were diagnosed with lung cancer, compared to the national average of 82.7.

• In addition to medical bills, smokers may also have trouble finding work. A recent article by MSN Money found that 5 percent of employers prefer not to hire smokers, and 1 percent won't hire them at all. Life insurance premiums are liable to go up as well: The lowest quote for a nonsmoker on BudgetLife.com was $1,140 in premiums per year compared to $2,571 for smokers. Moreover, nonsmokers generally receive a 10 percent discount on homeowners insurance due to the decreased risk of the home burning down.

Quitting smoking, therefore, can save you $1,638 per year on cigarettes and thousands of dollars on potential medical bills. It can also increase your chances of getting a job and decrease your life insurance and homeowners insurance premiums. Mississippians who want to quit and need help can call 1.800.QUITNOW.