Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/2440/76258
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Type: Journal article
Title: The health and cost implications of high body mass index in Australian defence force personnel
Author: Peake, J.
Gargett, S.
Waller, M.
McLaughlin, R.
Cosgrove, T.
Wittert, G.
Nasveld, P.
Warfe, P.
Citation: BMC Public Health, 2012; 12(1):451-467
Publisher: BioMed Central Ltd.
Issue Date: 2012
ISSN: 1471-2458
1471-2458
Statement of
Responsibility: 
Jonathan Peake, Susan Gargett, Michael Waller, Ruth McLaughlin, Tegan Cosgrove, Gary Wittert, Peter Nasveld and Peter Warfe
Abstract: Background: Frequent illness and injury among workers with high body mass index (BMI) can raise the costs of employee healthcare and reduce workforce maintenance and productivity. These issues are particularly important in vocational settings such as the military, which require good physical health, regular attendance and teamwork to operate efficiently. The purpose of this study was to compare the incidence of injury and illness, absenteeism, productivity, healthcare usage and administrative outcomes among Australian Defence Force personnel with varying BMI. Methods: Personnel were grouped into cohorts according to the following ranges for (BMI): normal (18.5 − 24.9 kg/m2; n = 197), overweight (25–29.9 kg/m2; n = 154) and obese (≥30 kg/m2) with restricted body fat (≤28% for females, ≤24% for males) (n = 148) and with no restriction on body fat (n = 180). Medical records for each individual were audited retrospectively to record the incidence of injury and illness, absenteeism, productivity, healthcare usage (i.e., consultation with medical specialists, hospital stays, medical investigations, prescriptions) and administrative outcomes (e.g., discharge from service) over one year. These data were then grouped and compared between the cohorts. Results: The prevalence of injury and illness, cost of medical specialist consultations and cost of medical scans were all higher (p < 0.05) in both obese cohorts compared with the normal cohort. The estimated productivity losses from restricted work days were also higher (p < 0.05) in the obese cohort with no restriction on body fat compared with the normal cohort. Within the obese cohort, the prevalence of injury and illness, healthcare usage and productivity were not significantly greater in the obese cohort with no restriction on body fat compared with the cohort with restricted body fat. The number of restricted work days, the rate of re-classification of Medical Employment Classification and the rate of discharge from service were similar between all four cohorts. Conclusions: High BMI in the military increases healthcare usage, but does not disrupt workforce maintenance. The greater prevalence of injury and illness, greater healthcare usage and lower productivity in obese Australian Defence Force personnel is not related to higher levels of body fat.
Keywords: Humans
Obesity
Wounds and Injuries
Body Mass Index
Models, Economic
Retrospective Studies
Absenteeism
Military Medicine
Cost of Illness
Adolescent
Adult
Military Personnel
Australia
Female
Male
Young Adult
Description: Extent: 10p.
Rights: © 2012 Peake et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
DOI: 10.1186/1471-2458-12-451
Published version: http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-12-451
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