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medpundit |
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Tuesday, June 28, 2005Preston's editorial (March 17 issue) on obesity and its influence on longevity, which accompanies the report by Olshansky et al., focused my thinking on morbidity versus mortality. Preston wrote that 'the current life expectancy at birth in the United States would be one third to three quarters of a year higher if all overweight adults were to attain their ideal weight.' This goal is unlikely to be achieved, and even if it were, the gain in life expectancy would be minuscule. As a clinician, however, I see daily the terrible morbidity that obese patients have - complications from diabetes, dyslipidemia and hypertension, wear and tear on the knees and hips, legs swollen from venous insufficiency, backache, and a winding down of physical activity. It seems to me that an emphasis on morbid states that could be averted with the elimination of some (not all) excess weight would permit an educable patient to sit up, take notice, and act. The gain in life expectancy is too small to sell to any patient. The avoidance of suffering is worth the effort. posted by Sydney on 6/28/2005 05:20:00 PM 0 comments 0 Comments: |
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