News in brief - Jan. 24, 2011

Excessive weight of U.S. population costs $270 billion

People who are overweight or obese are costing the country $270 billion annually in increased medical costs and high rates of disability and mortality, according to the latest estimates.

The study, released Jan. 10 by the Society of Actuaries, analyzed increased medical costs and loss of economic productivity resulting from excess mortality and disability. Researchers found that obesity cost the U.S. economy $198 billion in 2009, and costs of the overweight population were $72 billion (www.soa.org/files/pdf/research-2011-obesity-relation-mortality.pdf).

"There is substantial evidence that overweight and obesity are becoming worldwide epidemics and are having negative impacts on health and mortality," said study co-author Donald Behan, PhD, an independent consulting actuary.

An overweight person is defined as having a body mass index of 25 to 29.9, and an obese person has a body mass index of 30 or more.

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Pediatric offices have positive effect on at-risk family interaction

Parent education programs offered through pediatric primary care offices aided in more parent-child interactions for babies in at-risk families, according to a study in the January Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.

Researchers examined 675 mother-infant pairs seeking pediatric care between 2005 and 2008. Two-thirds were assigned to participate in interaction-based projects. One program included sessions with a child development specialist on the same days as primary care appointments, and the other covered similar topics through learning materials mailed to the family's home. The remaining families were placed in a control group. Assessments found that those participating in interaction projects had increased parent-child interactions compared with families in the control group (archpedi.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/abstract/165/1/42/).

Study authors say the findings show that pediatric care may offer an important opportunity to promote these interactions. Possible reasons include frequency of primary care visits, close relationships between parents and medical professionals, and lack of additional travel for parents.

The print version of this content appeared in the Jan. 31 issue of American Medical News.

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