Ten ways being fat costs money
June 19th, 2008 | by mbhunter |I’m fat and I’m trying to deflabbify myself for my health, my longevity, my self-esteem — and my wallet. Here are ten ways that being fat costs money:
- Eating more costs. Eating too much made me fat, and staying fat means I need more food. More food costs money.
- 2XL sizes and above are more expensive. I started needing extra extra large shirts to cover the bottom part of my belly. Wal-Mart charges $1 to $3 more for their plus-size shirts.
- Burning more gas costs. An extra 100 pounds — which is really close to what I have! — can cost me up to 2% on my gas mileage. This is physics.
- Using more soap costs more. (That by itself isn’t enough to work me up into a lather, though.)
- Life insurance premiums are higher. Obesity is one factor that contributes to placement in a higher-risk group, which translates to higher premiums.
- Health insurance premiums are higher. Group policies may not take this into account, but individual policies certainly do.
- Health care costs more. Fat people tend to get sick more often and have more medical issues than people with normal weight.
- If you’re fat, employers may charge you. Some employers are beginning to dock the paychecks of fat employees.
- If you’re fat, employers may not promote you, or could even fire you, depending on where you live. Employers have a bias against fat people, and in some places it’s perfectly legal to fire someone because they’re fat. Obesity doesn’t carry the same protections as race, gender, age, etc.
- Being fat contributes to all sorts of incremental taxes on productivity and time that chip away at earning power and efficiency. It takes longer to walk places and get dressed in the morning. Fat people tend not to sleep well, which kills productivity.
Any others I missed?
16 Responses to “Ten ways being fat costs money”
By jay on Jun 19, 2008 | Reply
‘It’s perfectly legal to fire someone because they are fat’ is not actually something that would stand up in an employment tribunal. That would only be the case if being fat prevented someone from doing their job. If you can find someone in your workplace who is equally large, but is a different gender or race and has not been fired – you’re safe!!!
Anyhow I meant to just say, I am actually quite thin, but have a huge appetite that I can rarely afford to keep satisfied… I am sure there are fat people that eat less than me – I’m not sure why I wanted to make that point…!
By Lazy Man and Health on Jun 19, 2008 | Reply
Ah ha! I had a feeling that you were trying to “deflabify” yourself.
By "Mo" Money on Jun 19, 2008 | Reply
Good post. I hadn’t thought about this in the way you described. And I like your ideas.
By Empress Juju on Jun 19, 2008 | Reply
Diets, diet books, diet food cost. I can’t tell you how much I’ve spent over the years trying to handle my weight quickly and effortlessly. Not to mention all the food I threw out in preparation for my diet, or all the expensive things I bought because they were on my diet… and then threw out later!
Driving or using transportation because you’re too fat to walk comfortably costs. I spent a lot of money on taxis to go short distances that I can walk now.
Self-hatred costs. I shop less all-around because I like myself more, and don’t need “things” to fill the hole in my spirit. Although I want to be clear: I don’t like myself better because I lost weight, I lost weight because I like myself better.
Thanks for the post, and best of luck on your journey!
By Cedric Canierro on Jun 20, 2008 | Reply
let me add that being fat also costs you when you’re dead because your relatives will customize your coffin and that will get you extra charge
By FFB on Jun 20, 2008 | Reply
Being overweight can lead to health problems which will make you less productive. Not just at work but in everyday life too.
By Erica @ Cook Quick Easy Recipes on Jun 20, 2008 | Reply
Funny and interesting post.
By Curt on Jun 20, 2008 | Reply
I guess that’s why America has a high cost of living.
By Jim on Jun 21, 2008 | Reply
Hi – interesting post.
I think that the risk of getting fired is smaller than the side effect of being fat, which is that you earn less and get promoted less often. Another way that being fat costs.
By Meghan on Jun 21, 2008 | Reply
When my best friend passed away 2 years ago, he was cremated. The funeral home charged an extra $50.00 for the cremation because he weighed over 250 lbs (he was 260, tall and mostly muscular)
By Nikki W on Jun 21, 2008 | Reply
Jim is right – your weight can and will have an effect on not only keeping your job, but on your promotion possibilities and how you are treated while there. And…it really impacts you when you are looking for a job. I had 75 interviews for jobs for which I was completely qualified (REALLY), but at 265 (and 5′5″) I didn’t get a one. In fact, I could watch some of the corporate recruiters’ faces change expression when I walked into the room at school.
Under employed, and not promoted… one of my friends more than doubled her salary within a year of dropping >100 pounds of weight.
By Value For Your Life on Jun 26, 2008 | Reply
You know it’s weird, I was just thinking about this very subject. I’ve gained some weight in the last couple of years (30lbs, but I’m just a small person), and am working hard to lose it again. Gaining extra pounds also means buying new clothes to accomodate your new girth
I couldn’t bear to part with some of my favourite clothes, so they are in a box labelled “skinny clothes” in my basement until I lose the weight!
BTW, I read the debate here on how your weight affects your employment, never even crossed my mind…interesting…
Amanda
By Sally Villarreal on Jul 7, 2008 | Reply
“Employers have a bias against fat people, and in some places it’s perfectly legal to fire someone because they’re fat. Obesity doesn’t carry the same protections as race, gender, age, etc.”
So losing weight is the best solution? If employers could discriminate against people with big noses, should people get rhinoplasty?
Part of the problem with the complex problems fat discrimination is that we get issues of health all tangled up with issues of beauty and conformity.
By Skinny Person on Aug 13, 2008 | Reply
Fat people are fat for a reason, they consume more calories than they burn… sort it out people
By Fat Person Smarter than Skinny Person on Aug 14, 2008 | Reply
“ANH” – WRONG ANSWER…Yes, some people are fat because they consume more calories than they burn. However, many people, like myself, are at the mercy of hormones and medical conditions, even stress and emotional problems can cause overconsumption – who the hell are you to judge that. Way to simplify a complicated epidemic – jerk.
By Slight dissagreement on Feb 2, 2009 | Reply
“It takes longer to walk places and get dressed in the morning. Fat people tend not to sleep well, which kills productivity.”
Some statements, like this one, are way over generalized.
I’m a ‘fat’ person, and I tend to take less time to get dressed than most (both fat and skinny) people I know. Anyone who can multi-task can do this.
Maybe it’s due to growing up with a father who’s 6′4, but I’ve always walked fast…you have to do something to be able to keep up with someone who takes one step to your two.
I also tend to sleep like the dead, and usually very well. There are things, like sleep aphena, that ‘fat’ people are more prone to.