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Besides increases in disease and mortality there are other implications of the present world trend in obesity. Among these are:
- Increased pressure on airline revenues (or increased fares) due to lobbying efforts to increase seating width on commercial airplanes and due to higher fuel costs. (Extra weight of obese passengers is costing airlines and consumers US$275,000,000 per annum.
- Increased litigation by obese persons suing restaurants (over causation of obesity) and airlines (over airline seating width). Note that the Personal Responsibility in Food Consumption Act of 2005 was motivated by a need to reduce litigation from obesity activists.
- Sizable societal economic costs attributable to obesity, with medical costs attributable to obesity rising to 78.5 billion dollars or 9.1 percent of all medical expenditures in the U.S. as of 1998. However, such studies do not necessarily consider that earlier mortality of obese people may save health costs associated with aging.
- Decreased worker productivity as measured by usage of disability leave and absenteeism at work.
- A study examining Duke University employees found that those with a BMI>40 filed twice as many workers compensation claims as workers whose BMI was 18.5-24.9, and had more than 12 times as many lost work days. The most common injuries were due to falls and lifting, and affected the lower extremities, wrists or hands, and backs.
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