Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/179211 
Authors: 
Year of Publication: 
2017
Series/Report no.: 
ADBI Working Paper No. 755
Publisher: 
Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI), Tokyo
Abstract: 
Obesity, defined as abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that may impair health, has a clearly measurable impact on health and health-related quality of life, and generates considerable economic burden. This study builds on previous research by examining the available evidence on obesity, estimating obesity-related medical costs using more representative and reliable data, and estimating obesity-related risk of disability in the Republic of Korea. The obesity rate is higher for males than for females and for the self-employed (including their dependents) than for employed adults (including their dependents) in the Republic of Korea. The obesity rate shows a weak U-shaped pattern in relation to income for employed adults. It has been growing over time, especially among younger adults and adolescents, indicating greater obesity in the future. Obesity (relative to having a BMI <25) is shown to be associated with about 5,000 won (in 2010 won) higher medical costs for male adults and about 77,000 won (in 2010 won) higher medical costs for female adults. Severe obesity (relative to having a BMI <30) increases medical costs far more than obesity for both males and females, indicating higher cost effects for the few who are severely obese. Moreover, obesity is shown to have increased medical costs far more for relatively unhealthy individuals at higher percentiles of medical costs. When these estimated effects of obesity in increasing medical costs were used to estimate obesity-related aggregate medical costs in the Republic of Korea, they were 35.8 billion won (in 2010 won) for males and 306.5 billion won (in 2010 won) for females. Furthermore, obesity is positively associated with disability, indicating another cost of obesity. Therefore, obesity is associated with a significant economic burden in terms of medical costs and disability in the Republic of Korea.
Subjects: 
Health
Korea
Republic of
JEL: 
I12
I18
Creative Commons License: 
cc-by-nc-nd Logo
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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