By Maxine Shapiro, KERA 90.1 business commentator
Dallas, TX – It's rare not to hear the word "epidemic" followed by the word "obesity." It's making almost every major industry take notice and change - some profitably, some not. I'm Maxine Shapiro with KERA Marketplace Midday.
The Rabbi began his sermon declaring he was going on a diet and then challenged the congregation to join him. Pretty light topic for the High Holy Day. He went on, outlining the many activities he's planned on assisting everyone in the weight loss. And then I realized it is a serious topic to engage in on such a solemn day.
Let's start with our teenagers. A few years ago, you'd be hard pressed to find a pediatrician willing to do bariatric surgery - stapling of the stomach - on any adolescent. Today's Wall Street Journal reports about 150 teenagers in the past two years have had this drastic surgery. And it's on the increase. Since 1980, the number of obese kids between the ages of 6 and 18 has more than doubled. So have the health problems, not to mention shame associated with being very overweight. Now the medical industry now has to open up its doors to a new much younger candidate for the severe surgery. And at $40,000 a pop, insurance companies are saying "no."
A couple of years of ago, Honda had to send its obese customers to other carmakers. They wouldn't vouch for the safety of a seatbelt extender. Seatbelt specifications require auto manufacturers to install seatbelts for people weighing up to 215 pounds, with measurements said to cover "95 percent of the U.S. population." Size is now being re-evaluated and Honda, for a fee, offers extenders.
And it's no easier dying than living obese. A casket company in Indiana never expected their business to be growing like this, says last week's New York Times. In the late 80's Goliath Casket sold one triple-wide casket a year. Today it's three or four a month, with annual sales rising about 20 percent. For KERA Marketplace Midday, I'm Maxine Shapiro.
Marketplace Midday Reports air on KERA 90.1 Monday - Friday at 1:04 p.m.
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