Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

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joechristmas
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Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by joechristmas »

Hello.

I am looking for some motivation to pursue a more healthy lifestyle as I have let things get out of control.

I was wondering if anyone had come across a longitudinal study or other research on the cost-savings that pursuing healthy habits/exercise can have on one's finances as they age.

Thank you in advance!
MJD
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by MJD »

Might suggest just taking a brisk walk first thing in the morning before coffee/tea.

Could be 3 minutes, could be 3 hours if you prefer.

In this case, doing could be better than reading.
runner540
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by runner540 »

If money works as motivation for you, fine. What motivates me to stay fit and healthy is not money. When I'm taking care of my health with good diet, exercise, sleep, etc, I:
feel way better physically and mentally in the short term
more focused, calm, creative at work
more patient, energetic, positive with family
and long term, am giving myself the best chance I can to have many active years of being there for my family, exploring the world, etc.
Good luck.
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by Cyclesafe »

We (unfortunately) bought into an annuity many years ago. But we will ameliorate that mistake from age 92 to 100, when at least one of us will be in the money.

Driving texters now keep me off my bike, but the beach calls every morning for its six miles. I cut way back on sugar, saturated fat, and alcohol. I feel and look great - or so people tell me every day.

Start with moderation and pile on only when you feel that the increment will be easily sustainable. But commit yourself to daily improvement. See your doctor regularly, take your meds, and get your shots.

An avoidable illness is a wake up call that money is not as important as health.
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Mr. Rumples
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by Mr. Rumples »

One study on eating healthy and chronic illness:

https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/3/12/e0 ... 8bfa4657e3

From the study: Consumption of a healthy diet is a priority for reducing chronic diseases including obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and several cancers.

Another study:

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-release ... 63984.html
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by oldcomputerguy »

The OP is asking about financial benefits of staying healthy. Please keep the replies headed in that direction.
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Da5id
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by Da5id »

I'd be curious to see such literature. With today's increasingly common high deductable plans wouldn't be surprised if there were such savings, though also dubious anyone has quantified them.
prd1982
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by prd1982 »

I’m guessing it is a wash:

* if unhealthy practices, you are likely to have more spending each year you are alive for medical care, to have others do work around the house that you cannot do, etc.

* if healthy practices,you are likely to live longer which means you need a larger net worth to maintain your lifestyle,
alfredwallace
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by alfredwallace »

I sometimes ponder the fact that exercise is usually required to live longer but if you hate exercise and add up all the hours of your life you must devote to it to increase your longevity, have you really gained anything? From a purely economic standpoint, you'd have to weigh the probability of having increased work productivity that would translate into higher pay from skipping regular exercise against the added productivity during your working years by not dying as earlier or having sufficiently debilitating health problems that it impairs work productivity. The other financial element is the amount of out-of-pocket health care costs you must pay due to poor health compared to a healthy lifestyle.

If I were brutally honest, I suspect that you would come out most a head financially by eating far fewer calories and keeping your BMI down but not exercising since you would pay less for food, no exercise equipment or gym memberships and could increase work-related productivity with the increased time available spent not exercising. You also would avoid many of the health problems that are primarily associated with obesity. Of course many debilitating health problems show up at post-retirement age and would therefore not influence your work productivity and you may be able to exercise more then (assuming you aren't dead from the lack of exercise and poor eating habits prior to that) when the work-related productivity costs would not be an issue.

I realize my thought experiment wouldn't serve as a motivator for exercise and I wouldn't advocate that approach for other reasons (e.g. how good you feel after exercising, increased mobility, more options for activities like kayaking or hiking etc.).
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by livesoft »

If one dies young, then one doesn't need to save for retirement. So there are financial anti-benefits of staying fit/healthy, too.
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JPH
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by JPH »

A major financial risk is outliving your savings. Other benefits of good health far outweigh the financial.
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Kagord
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by Kagord »

There's a anecdotal saying in my family, "when your young, your wealth is your jewels, when your old, your health is your jewels".

If you want motivation, spend a few days visiting a nursing home.
Ramjet
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by Ramjet »

The obvious is hospital bills. I'd also, say dying way before a spouse or when you have non-adult kids
livelovelaugh00
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by livelovelaugh00 »

Here's another motivation. Live longer and healthy, you could get more social security payments. How good is that!
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JoMoney
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by JoMoney »

I like the story of fitness guru Jim Fixx, wrote the 1977 best-selling book The Complete Book of Running.
Died after a heart attack while jogging at the age of 52. "Safe Withdrawal Rate" goes way up if you know that.
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JoeRetire
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by JoeRetire »

joechristmas wrote: Wed Jul 28, 2021 9:10 pm I am looking for some motivation to pursue a more healthy lifestyle as I have let things get out of control.

I was wondering if anyone had come across a longitudinal study or other research on the cost-savings that pursuing healthy habits/exercise can have on one's finances as they age.
A quick Google search for "what are the financial benefits of staying fit" reveals many articles.

For example: https://health.usnews.com/health-news/b ... you-richer

Still, even if there were no financial benefits, a healthy lifestyle leading to better health is a good thing. If the desire to be healthy doesn't motivate you, it's unlikely that the financial benefits will help.

Do it for your children.
Last edited by JoeRetire on Thu Jul 29, 2021 1:36 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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JoMoney
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by JoMoney »

Ramjet wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 7:17 am The obvious is hospital bills...
Studies say poor people use more acute hospital care. Correlation, being rich makes you fit/healthy ? ;)
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JoeQ
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by JoeQ »

Isn't it obvious?
  • Eating healthy is cheaper than eating junk food.
  • Vices are expensive (I'm assuming you drink; that's what made me fat)
  • Being healthy reduces medical expenses.
  • Being healthy makes you FEEL better, which makes you more productive.
  • Being healthy makes you more physically attractive, which can improve your career.
That's just a few of the financial reasons, and none of the "lifestyle" reasons.

Do you really need a peer-reviewed journal article? To me, it appears you're looking for a reason NOT to become healthy. I challenge you to adopt some healthy habits "just for the heck of it". Try it for six months and if you really feel worse and think it's not a financially viable lifestyle, then you can revert to your current ways.
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by daheld »

joechristmas wrote: Wed Jul 28, 2021 9:10 pm Hello.

I am looking for some motivation to pursue a more healthy lifestyle as I have let things get out of control.

I was wondering if anyone had come across a longitudinal study or other research on the cost-savings that pursuing healthy habits/exercise can have on one's finances as they age.

Thank you in advance!
I think there are likely too many confounding factors to observe some sort of causal or correlational relationship between level of fitness and socioeconomic status.

I think the more likely finding is that, because of their financial status, folks of a higher socioeconomic level are healthier than those who are poorer. Higher levels of wealth allow one to pay for a gym membership, live in an area with fewer instances of violence, less environmental pollution--the things we refer to as social determinants of health.

I think we're likely saying a similar thing here, but thinking about it from different perspectives. You're asking whether there's research that indicates if healthier people wind up richer as they age, I'm saying that richer people wind up healthier as they age.
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by Da5id »

JoeQ wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 9:00 am Isn't it obvious?
  • Eating healthy is cheaper than eating junk food.
  • Vices are expensive (I'm assuming you drink; that's what made me fat)
  • Being healthy reduces medical expenses.
  • Being healthy makes you FEEL better, which makes you more productive.
  • Being healthy makes you more physically attractive, which can improve your career.
That's just a few of the financial reasons, and none of the "lifestyle" reasons.

Do you really need a peer-reviewed journal article? To me, it appears you're looking for a reason NOT to become healthy. I challenge you to adopt some healthy habits "just for the heck of it". Try it for six months and if you really feel worse and think it's not a financially viable lifestyle, then you can revert to your current ways.
As to point 1, junk food is actually really cheap per calorie. Good fresh ingredients can be kinda pricey. Doesn't make junk food good, far from it, I'm willing to spend more for non-junk.

Honestly I don't need it to have financial benefits. I'd pay way more to be healthy myself. I've seen relatives reach EOL as invalids due to avoidable conditions, and I don't want to be that person.
JoeQ
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by JoeQ »

Da5id wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 9:08 am
JoeQ wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 9:00 am Isn't it obvious?
  • Eating healthy is cheaper than eating junk food.
  • Vices are expensive (I'm assuming you drink; that's what made me fat)
  • Being healthy reduces medical expenses.
  • Being healthy makes you FEEL better, which makes you more productive.
  • Being healthy makes you more physically attractive, which can improve your career.
That's just a few of the financial reasons, and none of the "lifestyle" reasons.

Do you really need a peer-reviewed journal article? To me, it appears you're looking for a reason NOT to become healthy. I challenge you to adopt some healthy habits "just for the heck of it". Try it for six months and if you really feel worse and think it's not a financially viable lifestyle, then you can revert to your current ways.
As to point 1, junk food is actually really cheap per calorie. Good fresh ingredients can be kinda pricey. Doesn't make junk food good, far from it, I'm willing to spend more for non-junk.

Honestly I don't need it to have financial benefits. I'd pay way more to be healthy myself. I've seen relatives reach EOL as invalids due to avoidable conditions, and I don't want to be that person.
In my opinion, "per calorie" is not a great metric. A 150 calorie bowl of oats will satiate me much more than a 150 calorie Snickers bar.
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zlandar
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by zlandar »

Money is just a tool do be able to do the things you want in life.

If your health is so poor that you can't do anything with your money than what is the point?

Eat less and slowly get your weight under control. Walk around the neighborhood for physical activity.
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by MoonOrb »

I'd love to see this data, too. Another financial benefit of staying healthy is that it mitigates risk of health conditions that affect one's employability. People who are unable to do certain jobs or tasks during prime earning years miss out on opportunities, promotions, etc and may need to take extended time away from work at lower or no pay, and may even have to retire early. People whose health conditions disable them may, relatedly, face discrimination from employers impacting these same things.

So I think there is an argument that remaining healthy is a type of insurance against one cause of potential income loss. This is in addition to the potential savings in out-of-pocket outlays for medical care or specialized long-term care.

I hope this literature exists--thanks for asking!
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by stoptothink »

I can't believe this is a thread.
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by Da5id »

stoptothink wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 10:00 am I can't believe this is a thread.
If you read the original post, OP is looking for more motivation to make some healthier choices. If financial benefits gives OP that extra kick to watch what they eat or do some cardio seems good to me.
AngelFIRE
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by AngelFIRE »

I would recommend the Younger Next Year books by Crowely and Lodge. There is an edition for women. There is a section on financial health. The primary focus is on aging in a healthy way.
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by stoptothink »

Da5id wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 10:04 am
stoptothink wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 10:00 am I can't believe this is a thread.
If you read the original post, OP is looking for more motivation to make some healthier choices. If financial benefits gives OP that extra kick to watch what they eat or do some cardio seems good to me.
But it's an ambiguous topic that can be twisted in a million ways. Not that I know if this the case for the OP, but since this is my world https://www.researchgate.net/publicatio ... ted_States

Assuming obesity and cardiometabolic health is the consideration, does OP need a peer-reviewed publication to know that "management" of type 2 diabetes can be expensive? That losing a leg or your eyesight to diabetes can reduce your career opportunities?
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by quantAndHold »

It seems doubtful that there are any studies. The kind of people who do studies about personal finance are not experts in public health, and the people who are experts in public health are generally not experts in personal finance. But it doesn’t take a rocket surgeon to know that chronic illness is expensive, and a lot of chronic illnesses, such as type 2 diabetes, are related to lifestyle.
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JoeRetire
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by JoeRetire »

JoeQ wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 9:00 am
  • Eating healthy is cheaper than eating junk food.
Junk food is very, very cheap.
Last edited by JoeRetire on Thu Jul 29, 2021 1:31 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Train2bogle
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by Train2bogle »

What if you got a part time job doing something that forces you to exercise. Maybe walking dogs, or mowing lawns? Could make an extra $50-$100/wk and a few hours of exercise.
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by JoeQ »

JoeRetire wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 10:22 am
JoeQ wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 9:00 am
  • Eating healthy is cheaper than eating junk food.
Junk food is very, very cheap.
Eating healthy is cheap, too. You just have to buy raw ingredients rather than "healthy" prepared dishes.

Oats, beans, rice, fresh/frozen produce, etc are all dirt cheap, at least in my 250k city.
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Madvillain
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by Madvillain »

My guess is that most studies will have a hard time disentangling correlation and causation.

In any event, the financial benefits seem obvious. Cooking at home is much cheaper and healthier than eating out (found this out during COVID lockdowns when I cooked 100% of my meals at home). Alcohol and tobacco are expensive and cutting down on both can save lots of money. Working out regularly clearly lowers your risk of heart disease and diabetes.

Of course if you really want to save money you may just want to start smoking and be a couch potato -- you'll die sooner and will need far less for retirement on an expected value basis.

This is a situation where it doesn't even make much sense to look at the financial benefits.
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by Carousel »

joechristmas wrote: Wed Jul 28, 2021 9:10 pm I am looking for some motivation to pursue a more healthy lifestyle as I have let things get out of control.
I totally understand the question--you're looking for a little extra push and using something you enjoy thinking about (finances) to motivate you.
Do you know what your illnesses your family tends to develop? Cancer, stroke, autoimmune, diabetes, dementia? Pick whatever seems to be a family weakness and look up the stats on that.

Ex: for cancer,
https://www.fightcancer.org/sites/defau ... 222020.pdf

You could also choose one fact and use it as a "dumb focus," like endurance athletes do. Just keep reminding yourself of it over and over. The fact could be positive or negative information.
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by Caduceus »

Hmm, are you confident that reading literature about the financial benefits of staying fit will be what motivates you to actually do something about it?

I am/was in the same position. I am naturally very lean so I didn't really see the point in exercising (I know that it's bad logic.)

The only thing that helped in my case is that my husband drags me to exercise with him even if it makes me grumpy with him. Maybe you just need a friend to motivate you if you can do it together.
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JoeRetire
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by JoeRetire »

JoeQ wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 10:34 am
JoeRetire wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 10:22 am
JoeQ wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 9:00 am
  • Eating healthy is cheaper than eating junk food.
Junk food is very, very cheap.
Eating healthy is cheap, too. You just have to buy raw ingredients rather than "healthy" prepared dishes.

Oats, beans, rice, fresh/frozen produce, etc are all dirt cheap, at least in my 250k city.
Rice and beans. Beans and rice.

Or McDonald's $1 value menu.
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by Grt2bOutdoors »

You don’t need literature. Pick up the phone and ask your local dentist how much it will cost you for a root canal, a crown or treatment for periodontal disease. You think I’m kidding? That alone should provide strong motivation to reduce consumption of certain things and practice good habits.

In the same practice, call up your physician and ask. That conversation should be documented in your journal. Now you have the literature to prove the cost. If you don’t spend it, it translates into savings. One could say that having savings is a financial benefit, wouldn’t you agree?
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by Grt2bOutdoors »

JoeRetire wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 1:30 pm
JoeQ wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 10:34 am
JoeRetire wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 10:22 am
JoeQ wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 9:00 am
  • Eating healthy is cheaper than eating junk food.
Junk food is very, very cheap.
Eating healthy is cheap, too. You just have to buy raw ingredients rather than "healthy" prepared dishes.

Oats, beans, rice, fresh/frozen produce, etc are all dirt cheap, at least in my 250k city.
Rice and beans. Beans and rice.

Or McDonald's $1 value menu.
McDonald’s is hardly “healthy”. Might taste good but healthy?
"One should invest based on their need, ability and willingness to take risk - Larry Swedroe" Asking Portfolio Questions
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JoeRetire
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by JoeRetire »

Grt2bOutdoors wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 1:44 pm
JoeRetire wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 1:30 pm
JoeQ wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 10:34 am
JoeRetire wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 10:22 am
JoeQ wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 9:00 am
  • Eating healthy is cheaper than eating junk food.
Junk food is very, very cheap.
Eating healthy is cheap, too. You just have to buy raw ingredients rather than "healthy" prepared dishes.

Oats, beans, rice, fresh/frozen produce, etc are all dirt cheap, at least in my 250k city.
Rice and beans. Beans and rice.

Or McDonald's $1 value menu.
McDonald’s is hardly “healthy”. Might taste good but healthy?
The question was "eating healthy" versus "junk food" and which is cheaper, not which is healthier.
Perhaps the nesting of questions and answers was confusing.
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by alfaspider »

alfredwallace wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 7:03 am I sometimes ponder the fact that exercise is usually required to live longer but if you hate exercise and add up all the hours of your life you must devote to it to increase your longevity, have you really gained anything? From a purely economic standpoint, you'd have to weigh the probability of having increased work productivity that would translate into higher pay from skipping regular exercise against the added productivity during your working years by not dying as earlier or having sufficiently debilitating health problems that it impairs work productivity. The other financial element is the amount of out-of-pocket health care costs you must pay due to poor health compared to a healthy lifestyle.

If I were brutally honest, I suspect that you would come out most a head financially by eating far fewer calories and keeping your BMI down but not exercising since you would pay less for food, no exercise equipment or gym memberships and could increase work-related productivity with the increased time available spent not exercising. You also would avoid many of the health problems that are primarily associated with obesity. Of course many debilitating health problems show up at post-retirement age and would therefore not influence your work productivity and you may be able to exercise more then (assuming you aren't dead from the lack of exercise and poor eating habits prior to that) when the work-related productivity costs would not be an issue.

I realize my thought experiment wouldn't serve as a motivator for exercise and I wouldn't advocate that approach for other reasons (e.g. how good you feel after exercising, increased mobility, more options for activities like kayaking or hiking etc.).
None of this is quantifiable, but I find exercise helps with focus and general productivity. The time spent exercising isn't "lost" any more than the time spent sleeping. No, you aren't getting any work done in your sleep, but you wouldn't get much work done if you never slept.
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by Neuron »

JoMoney wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 8:03 am I like the story of fitness guru Jim Fixx, wrote the 1977 best-selling book The Complete Book of Running.
Died after a heart attack while jogging at the age of 52. "Safe Withdrawal Rate" goes way up if you know that.
The story is less of an aberration if you know that the author’s father died of a heart attack at age 43 and Fixx was an obese smoker prior to starting running in his mid 30s.
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by jj45 »

Here are some numbers. Obviously hard to measure well. The distribution probably has a long tail of very large expenses.

https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/obesity-pr ... /economic/
one study they cite found per capita medical spending for obese individuals was an additional $1,429 (42% higher) compared to individuals of normal weight. Another study they cite says the cost is $2,741 higher (150% increase).

https://www.usnews.com/news/health-news ... year-study
health care costs for obese adults were nearly $1,900 higher each year, compared to their normal-weight peers.

https://www.heraldopenaccess.us/openacc ... penditures
obesity raised individual medical care costs by $3,429 per year in 2013 dollars

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11323447/
people with BMI fo 25-29.9 have 36% higher medical costs than people with BMI 20-24.9
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by JoeQ »

JoeRetire wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 1:30 pm
JoeQ wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 10:34 am
JoeRetire wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 10:22 am
JoeQ wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 9:00 am
  • Eating healthy is cheaper than eating junk food.
Junk food is very, very cheap.
Eating healthy is cheap, too. You just have to buy raw ingredients rather than "healthy" prepared dishes.

Oats, beans, rice, fresh/frozen produce, etc are all dirt cheap, at least in my 250k city.
Rice and beans. Beans and rice.

Or McDonald's $1 value menu.
How many items from the value menu must one purchase to satisfy one's hunger for an entire day? How many meals could you make of rice and beans with the same $?
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JoeRetire
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by JoeRetire »

JoeQ wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 3:23 pm
JoeRetire wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 1:30 pm
JoeQ wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 10:34 am
JoeRetire wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 10:22 am
JoeQ wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 9:00 am
  • Eating healthy is cheaper than eating junk food.
Junk food is very, very cheap.
Eating healthy is cheap, too. You just have to buy raw ingredients rather than "healthy" prepared dishes.

Oats, beans, rice, fresh/frozen produce, etc are all dirt cheap, at least in my 250k city.
Rice and beans. Beans and rice.

Or McDonald's $1 value menu.
How many items from the value menu must one purchase to satisfy one's hunger for an entire day? How many meals could you make of rice and beans with the same $?
No idea. I suppose it depends on how hungry you are and how much rice and beans you can stand.
Dave Ramsey probably knows.

I do wonder how much it would cost to have someone else make you a meal of rice and beans so that you could eat in your car.
More cheap fast food: https://www.fastfoodmenuprices.com/chea ... d-options/
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vitaflo
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by vitaflo »

Go to the Mayo's website. Look up any number of conditions in their database. Check out the Lifestyle and Home Remedies for said condition. Notice how many of them list "Exercise Regularly" as a way to treat/manage/prevent said condition. That's enough for me.
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MJS
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by MJS »

The Health and Retirement Study has been doing surveys since 1990. Publications include white papers, peer reviewed articles, reviews and recommendations.

I did a quick search of their publication database for
_ wealth and fitness _
https://hrs.isr.umich.edu/search-result ... nd+fitness
Note that as others have said: correlation and causation are not always evident, and teasing out whether wealth results in fitness or fitness supports wealth is difficult.

About / https://hrs.isr.umich.edu/about
"The University of Michigan Health and Retirement Study (HRS) is a longitudinal panel study that surveys a representative sample of approximately 20,000 people in America, supported by the National Institute on Aging (NIA U01AG009740) and the Social Security Administration. "
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oldfort
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by oldfort »

livesoft wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 7:09 am If one dies young, then one doesn't need to save for retirement. So there are financial anti-benefits of staying fit/healthy, too.
For this reason, I expect staying fit/healthy costs more money in the long run. The people who die at 60 didn't need any retirement savings.
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Plano
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by Plano »

The latest I have seen is from J Manag Care Spec Pharm, 2021 Mar;27(3):354-366, "Direct medical costs of obesity in the United States and the most populous states" https://www.jmcp.org/doi/full/10.18553/jmcp.2021.20410
Adults with obesity in the United States compared with those with normal weight experienced higher annual medical care costs by $2,505 or 100%, with costs increasing significantly with class of obesity, from 68.4% for class 1 to 233.6% for class 3. The effects of obesity raised costs in every category of care: inpatient, outpatient, and prescription drugs. Increases in medical expenditures due to obesity were higher for adults covered by public health insurance programs ($2,868) than for those having private health insurance ($2,058). In 2016, the aggregate medical cost due to obesity among adults in the United States was $260.6 billion. The increase in individual-level expenditures due to obesity varied considerably by state (e.g., 24.0% in Florida, 66.4% in New York, and 104.9% in Texas).
But the study is financed by Novo Nordisk, which has a new obesity drug. So, grain of salt and all that.

ETA: The motivational info you probably want is in the citations to other studies, e.g., "Su et al. (2015) found a 3-fold increase in medical expenditures from class 1 obesity to class 3 obesity, where each kilogram of weight was associated with high average costs of $140 annually. [15]" So, OP you can pay yourself $140 per 2.2 pounds you lose and keep off, per year. How's that for incentive?
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Re: Any literature on the financial benefits of staying fit/healthy?

Post by LadyGeek »

I removed a post discussing longevity and health (medical advice). The discussion is trending in this direction (research studies making medical claims). This thread has run its course and is locked (medical advice). See: Medical Issues
Questions on medical issues are beyond the scope of the forum. If you are looking for medical information online, I suggest you start with the Medical Library Association's User's Guide to Finding and Evaluating Health Information on the Web which, in addition to providing guidance on evaluating health information, includes a list of their top recommended sites.
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