Hidden costs of women’s excess body weight

Excess body weight results in increased admissions and hospital costs for a wide range of conditions in women, a study found. Researchers analysed admission rates and hospital costs in relation to BMI in just over a million women aged 50 to 64 in England, who were followed for five years.

Results, reported in the Lancet, showed that every increase in BMI above 20 was linked to a 7.4% increase in annual hospital costs for all conditions except chest complaints.