That extra weight is costing you money

The New York Times has a story on the extra cost of being overweight.

There is another consequence to packing on extra weight: being fat costs money — tens of thousands of dollars over a lifetime.

Interestingly, overweight persons don't spend more money on food, that money is going to life insurance premiums that are two to four times as large!

Diabetes, a disease that afflicts 21 million Americans, is a common complication. Amputating a toe, a not uncommon result of untreated diabetes, costs $15,000. Other costs associated with the effects of packing too many pounds:

• $44,000 for a heart attack
• $40,200 for a stroke
• $37,000 for end-state kidney disease

The article puts the costs of American obesity at "about $80 billion a year and steadily growing." Yikes!