Dollars and sense an economic costing of obesity, food insecurity, and chronic illness

Summary: This report is divided into six sections. In the first part, we describe data sources used for this study. The second section describes Body Mass Index, the most common measure of overweight, as well its limitations. The third section provides an account of the prevalence obesity in Canada and internationally, paying attention to the impact of sex and race/ethnicity. The fourth part examines the prevalence of food insecurity in Canada and the relationship between insecurity, obesity and related health care conditions among women. The fifth section describes the methodology and estimates the direct costs associated with managing chronic conditions related to food security and obesity. The report concludes with a summary of findings and recommendations for further work.