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The Staggering Cost of Diabetes
The Triple Solution for a Healthier America is a three-part approach to tackle chronic diseases, promote a healthier life, and lower healthcare costs by focusing on Prevention, Intervention, and Innovation.

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The Triple Solution for a Healthier America: Using Prevention to reduce chronic disease, promote a healthier life, and lower healthcare costs of diabetes and other chronic diseases The Triple Solution for a Healthier America: Using Intervention to better manage chronic diseases like type 2 diabetes, promote a healthier life, and lower healthcare costs. The Triple Solution for a Healthier America: Using Innovation to reduce chronic disease and lower healthcare costs. Learn what you can do to reduce chronic disease, lower healthcare costs, and live a healthier life through personal, professional, and political involvement with the Triple Solution for a Healthier America.

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Today, 1 in 3 children in the US is overweight or obese. That number has tripled in the last 30 years.1,2 But we can stop this epidemic with achievable, common sense measures to improve the lives of an entire generation.

The Consequences of Childhood Obesity

Obesity puts kids on a course toward chronic diseases such as heart disease and diabetes later in life. The implications for their health and the cost of healthcare are serious.3

  • The US faces $3 billion per year in direct medical costs for kids with excess weight.3
  • Since overweight and obese adults incur an estimated $1,429 more in medical expenses than the normal-weight peers, healthcare costs would be expected to rise dramatically.4
  • If nothing is done to tackle this crisis, 43% of US adults will be obese by 2018, costing the nation an estimated $344 billion in medical-related expenses.5

Today’s kids could represent the first generation in history to have a shorter lifespan than their parents.6

What Can We Do About It?

Childhood obesity can largely be held in check if we follow five common sense measures as outlined by the White House report from 20107:

According to a recent study, childhood obesity rates could be reduced by 40% if families simply watch less weekday TV, get more rest, and eat dinner together as a family.8

  1. Remove barriers and empower Americans to take control of their health.
    • Offer evidence-based care coordination and wellness programs to help overweight Medicare beneficiaries shed pounds.
    • Include obesity counseling as a preventative service with no or low cost-sharing.
    • In public schools, reinstate physical education and require school lunches to meet nutritional standards.
    • Ensure that all Americans have access to a place where they can be physically active and purchase healthy foods by supporting tax, grant, and subsidy programs that achieve these goals.
  2. Educate Americans to see being obese as a serious medical condition that significantly heightens their risk for other health problems.
    • Use public awareness campaigns and other communications tools to empower healthcare providers – with a focus on primary care physicians – to treat obesity like a medical condition.
    • Develop recommendations for approaching the subject of overweight/obesity in a clinical setting.
    • Support training at all levels of the healthcare workforce that emphasizes reducing obesity as a way to prevent and manage chronic diseases.
  3. Make sure that fear of an obesity stigma does not overshadow the vital need to combat obesity.
    • Increase funding for research on obesity prevention and control.
    • Support educational workshops that give all Americans guidance in preventing and treating obesity.
    • Provide support systems for patients and family members to adhere to treatments for obesity.
  4. Redesign our healthcare system to treat obesity like a preventable medical condition.
    • Pay for "extra" care like weight loss counseling.
    • Reimburse for nutritionists and other specialists.
    • Increase coverage of comprehensive primary care, which should, in theory, include better obesity monitoring and prevention.
  5. Engage employers and communities to get them invested in promoting wellness.
    • Offer tax credits to employers that offer wellness benefits and encourage health.
    • Ensure that programs are voluntary and easy to access with a well-designed and well-communicated structure and series of benefits.
    • Provide incentives and funding through community health centers (including school-based centers).

See how GlaxoSmithKline and the Washington Redskins are partnering to help the people of Washington, D.C. beat childhood obesity and a range of chronic diseases.

References:

  1. Ogden CL, Carroll MD, Curtin LR, Lamb MM, Flegal KM. Prevalence of high body mass index in US children and adolescents, 2007-2008. JAMA. 2010; 303(3): 242-249.
  2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Health Topics: Childhood Obesity. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Web site. Available at http://www.cdc.gov/HealthyYouth/obesity/. Accessed November 9, 2010.
  3. Trasande L, Chatterjee S. Corrigendum: the impact of obesity on health service utilization and costs in childhood. Obesity. 2009; 17(9): 1749-1752.
  4. Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease. Recommendations on Reversing Obesity Trends With Health Reform. Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease Web site. Available at http://www.fightchronicdisease.org/pdfs/PFCDPolicyRecommendationsonObesity_
    FINAL_000.pdf    . Accessed Oct 5, 2010.
  5. Olshansky J, Passaro D, Hershow R, et al. A potential decline in life expectancy in the United States in the 21st century. N Engl J Med. 2005; 352(11):1138-1144.
  6. White House Task Force on Childhood Obesity. Solving the problem of childhood obesity within a generation. White House Report, May 2010.
  7. Anderson SE, Whitaker RC. Household routines and obesity in US preschool-aged children. Pediatrics. 2010; 125(3): 420-428.