Hacker News Reader

Comment by da_big_ghey | Hacker News Reader

Nearly 3/4 of out adults are overweight, thats mostly shitty choices. You say "disorder" like it is something these people got through no fault of their own but that is not often the case. Shitty choices probably we should stigmatize becuase accepting this many fat people have gotten us a public health crisis.

View on HN

I hear this shtick repeated every time someone doesn't want to fund universal healthcare because they don't want to pay for fat people. Fun fact, obese people actually have lower lifetime healthcare costs than healthy people.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2225433/

Now, if you wish to reduce obesity because you're more interested in a person's quality adjusted life years, you absolutely do want to treat obesity (and addiction) like a disorder, because compassion and empathy is the only way you're ever going to get someone to make the long term life choices they need to get better.

I referenced overweight which is many more people. They are the ones who live long enough to spend big dollars on healthcare but still cost much more. They arent food addicts or something they just cant be bothered to make gym trips.

I'm assuming you have studies to back these assertions up?

>Is it because they die sooner and more suddenly?

Fun fact, obese people actually have lower lifetime healthcare costs than healthy people.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com