Eli5: if obesity is so unhealthy, why do countries with high obesity rates such as US and UK generally have higher average lifespans than many countries with lower obesity rates?

Question

Eli5: if obesity is so unhealthy, why do countries with high obesity rates such as US and UK generally have higher average lifespans than many countries with lower obesity rates?

In: 2

Answer 1

TLDR: Easily available medical care

Once a country reaches a point where medical care is widely available for everyone the life expectancy starts going up fast.

For most Western countries this happened in the 1950-60s. The infant mortality rate in particular was as high as 20% before the wide spread availability of medical care.

The key point is that obesity and it’s related medical conditions are all treatable, so long as you have access to medical care Diabetes, heart conditions, sleep issues, joint problems, fatty liver, gall stones, etc etc are all treatable conditions.

The US actually has some of the lowest life expectancy rates in the western world.

Obesity is one factor in this, but it’s mostly the cost of medical care. The US continues to drag behind because of their insistence of maintaining a for-profit healthcare system. People don’t want to see a Doctor even for check ups because they have to pay for it, so the poor in particular have much poorer health and lower life expectancy as a result.