An article caught my eye as I flipped through the August issue of Money magazine entitled the “High Price of Healthy Living.” It is an article with a few graphed statistics. I guess the headline worked because it slowed my flipping down to see exactly how having healthy eating habits and exercise can cost me more money over my lifetime.
The article shows that:
The average lifetime health care cost of healthy retirees is $260k.
The average lifetime health care cost of unhealthy retirees is $220k.
As a relatively healthy individual, I only visit my doctor a handful of times a year (and that is on a bad year too) for routine stuff like allergies or a sore throat. So maybe after a lifetime of healthy eating habits and exercising, I end up with a bum hip and back (don’t I have that already?) that needs constant attention from my doctor when I retire?
Then the article shows a graph that healthy retirees pay more out of pocket than unhealthy retirees. Is this one of those duh moments?
Finally, it shows a graph that healthy retirees is more likely to face more medical bills, use long term care, and end up in a nursing home… for MORE YEARS. Of course a lifetime of health eating habits and exercise is going to cost you more money for health care — you are living longer! Geez, what a waste of a page on the magazine.
You spend more money in general when you live longer, whether it is for health care or just the cable bill. I sure would not be complaining at 80 of facing another 10 years in health care cost if it means I can live longer and see my grandchildren grow up.
Until next time and thanks for stopping by Small Steps to Health.
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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
I’d also be curious to know if part of the reason why it costs more is because the healthy people are more likely to get help for their ailments than unhealthy people. That IS a really silly story to have in the magazine, though.
Sagan – I have to disagree. From my personal experience, it seems like my unhealthiest friends are always seeing the doctor for something, whether it is to change medication or get some new test done. At the first sign of something wrong, they are already speed dialing their doctor. Rarely do they think about making lifestyle changes that might help their ailments. Thanks for the comment.
Exactly, living longer means you spend more money. Spending more time alive is worth the extra money, in my opinion.
I hope this article has some legs for years to come. Then people can stop going on and on about how costly fat people are on healthcare.
Zahra – Money is just money. If I have the choice to live 10 years longer, but have less money to spend on material goods, I would still chose life. Thanks for the comment.