According to the European Food Information Council (EUFIC), international studies on the economic costs of obesity and overweight have shown that they account for between 2% and 7% of total healthcare spending . In France, for example, the direct cost of obesity-related diseases (including expenses for personal healthcare, hospital care, medical services and drugs for diseases with a proven link to obesity) amounts to 2% of total expenses sanitary. In the Netherlands, the proportion of total general medical expenses attributable to obesity and excess weight is approximately 3-4%. And in England, the annual cost of obesity and its treatment is roughly £ 500 million.
On the other hand, EUFIC affirms that the estimated human cost of obesity is 18 million sick days and 30,000 deaths each year , which has the consequence that 40,000 years of working life are lost and that life expectancy decreases by nine years.
