There is a huge push in our society to lose weight. With a third of children five and under now considered overweight and about 25% of those obese, doctors are encouraging better diet and exercise more than ever before. With that said, there are other avenues of life that your growing waistline could have a detrimental effect on.
After your health, your wallet receives the biggest punch in the gut from each uninvited pound. Whether you are in a situation where you can control your weight gain or not, below are three ways your waistline could be affecting your personal bottom line.
Larger Grocery Bill
Now all of us have to eat, but day after day, there are people who rush through the line at the grocery store with a cart full of frozen burritos, chips, sodas, and tv dinners. Not only are these things full of fat, salt, and other weight contributing factors, they usually cost more.
On top of that, if you are an avid overeater (let’s be honest,) your bill goes up substantially just because you purchase more than you actually need. Another casualty your wallet may suffer is frequent trips to eat out. Most of us love food and the one thing that goes best with good food is good company.
Many of us enjoy weekly outings with friends or family at our favorite restaurants. While there, we forget about how we could have better spent the money or that we just went grocery shopping and could have prepared dinner for friends and family without spending the extra cash.
Higher Medical Costs
Along with carrying extra pounds comes a slew of possible medical issues. The first to rear its ugly head is usually high blood pressure. The pressure extra weight puts on your heart, arteries, and veins makes it difficult for your body to push blood throughout itself.
As you gain weight, you also increase your risk for type 2 diabetes, sleep apnea, liver and kidney disease, and certain types of cancer. If you are pregnant and overweight, you set up an easy scenario for high blood sugar, blood pressure, and increase your risk of having a C-section.
Each and every one of these effects will cause extra doctor’s appointments, extra prescription medications, and sometimes surgeries that will continually bleed your wallet dry.
Lower Self Confidence
How many times do you look in the mirror each day and genuinely enjoy what you see? Someone who is struggling with weight issues usually has a hard time approving of what they look like.
Having a low opinion of what you look like or being disappointed in how you have handled your personal health can affect how you handle yourself at home and at work. If you can’t seem to find the confidence to take a risk at work and ask for that raise, you could cost yourself thousands of dollars a year.
Lacking the gumption to close that multimillion dollar deal could cost you a hefty bonus, not to mention that promotion. A lack of self confidence could cost you in other areas of life, as well.
Being overweight is not always something you can control, but if you can, make the effort. It could save you a lot of money.
