For any employer only now starting to consider the idea of investing in employee health management (EHM), perhaps the best place to start is with a weight management program. Overweight/obesity is by far the most prevalent health problem in the U.S. and a growing problem in the rest of the world as well. Obesity ranges from 20-30%+ in almost all states (Colorado the sole exception), and has more then doubled in the past twenty years. Overweight affects roughly two-thirds of the population, and has grown at roughly the same rate.
The challenge is not merely to lose weight. Hundreds of different methods, diets, products and drugs enable people to lose weight. But most of them regain much or all of that weight in one year, and almost all within five years. The only long-term effective way to lose and sustain weight loss is to make permanent lifestyle changes, which are necessary even after bariatric surgery, for example. Making simple, comfortable, and sustainable changes a permanent part of daily routine is the key, mainly reductions in calorie intake and increases in calorie burning through daily exercise that fit well into daily lifestyles, and provide enough enjoyment to be welcomed rather than burdens.
Employers are perhaps the most logical choices for supporting weight management, since they have by far the most economic risk and benefit potential. Overweight/obesity have been found to raise healthcare costs as much as 52%, for example, while increasing absence costs by 126%. [“Employer-Sponsored Weight Management Programs: The Business Case” HealthEnhancementSystems.com 2007] And since presenteeism effects are normally about three or four times as great as absenteeism costs, this burden combined can easily be $8000 per employee per year in lost productivity alone, depending on average employee compensation. [“Why Marathon Health? The Real Problem = Total Costs” MarathonHealth.com 2007]
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Source: WorldHealthCareBlog.org.