You can almost see the thick cloud of smug forming over the West Coast in response to the news that sa国际传媒 could cut its health-care costs by 10 per cent if all Canadians were as health-conscious as British Columbians.
A study in the Canadian Journal of Public Health analyzed numbers from across the country and concluded that British Columbia leads the way with its low rates of inactivity, obesity and smoking.
If everyone were as virtuous as British Columbians, the study concluded, sa国际传媒 would save $5.3 billion a year in direct health-care costs and indirect costs such as shortened lives and disability. Obesity costs sa国际传媒 about $23 billion a year; tobacco smoking costs the country nearly $19 billion.
The study鈥檚 author, Hans Krueger, a health economist with the School of Population and Public Health at the University of British Columbia, says the analysis isn鈥檛 exact 鈥� the numbers could be off 17 per cent one way or the other 鈥� but the figures are still significant.
Statistics vary substantially across the province, says Krueger. People in southwestern sa国际传媒 weigh less and are more active than in other parts of the province, likely because of the climate 鈥� those in the Interior and the northern part of the province have much lower fitness levels.
So let鈥檚 not get carried away patting ourselves on the back. Being better than everyone else doesn鈥檛 count for much if everyone else is doing poorly.
There鈥檚 still plenty of room for improvement. Obesity and smoking still cost sa国际传媒鈥檚 health-care system dearly.
