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Obesity Blamed for Preventable Death and Injury Due to Failure to Use Seat Belts

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Nashville, Tenn. – Continuing research at the Meharry-State Farm Alliance reveals that injury and death from motor vehicle crashes should be listed with diabetes, heart disease, stroke and cancer as diseases and conditions made significantly worse by America's epidemic of obesity. More than 42,000 deaths and three million injuries result annually from motor vehicle crashes in the United States.

In a study published in the November 2007 issue of the journal, Obesity, lead author David Schlundt, Ph.D., a health psychologist who leads behavioral research for the Meharry-State Farm Alliance in Nashville, reported that people who are obese have lower rates of seat belt use than their lean counterparts.

An estimated 26 percent of the United States adult population, or about 60 million people, are obese, according to 2006 data compiled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). For its study, the Alliance analyzed 2002 data from the CDC's Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System.

Researchers divided the more than 230,000 people into groups based on their body mass index (BMI), a measure of how overweight an individual is. The rate of always wearing seat belts was 82.6 percent for non-obese motorists (BMI less than 25), 80.1 percent for overweight motorists (BMI 25-29), 76.6 percent for obese motorists (BMI: 30-39) and 69.8 percent for extremely obese motorists (BMI 40 and above). The gap climbed from 2.5 percent for overweight, to 6.0 percent among the obese, to 12.8 percent among the extremely obese.

The Meharry analysis revealed that millions of Americans are increasing their risk for injury or death in motor vehicle crashes by failing to use seat belts. "Because seat belts can reduce motor vehicle crash-related morbidity and mortality by 50 percent," Dr. Schlundt asserted, "these findings suggest that many American motorists are unnecessarily at risk for death or injury in motor vehicle crashes."

Rates of obesity and extreme obesity reportedly are higher among African Americans and Latinos in the Unites States, suggesting that the obesity-seat belt relationship should be of particular concern to those interested in minority health and health disparities.

"One of the main objectives of the Meharry-State Farm Alliance is to reduce disparities in seat belt use and motor vehicle injury and death in minority populations," said Kellie Clapper, State Farm assistant vice president, community relations. "This research provides one clue about the reason for the disparity."

Possible Solutions

Two possible solutions for combating the lack of seat belt use associated with obesity are listed below:

* Many automobile manufacturers make seat belt extenders that are available for free or at a nominal cost. Manufacturer contact information is available at the following Web site: http://www.ifisher.com/getbelts.asp .

* Obese drivers may be able to find weight-loss support from the State Farm sponsored Dr. Ian Smith 50 Million Pound Challenge, http://www.50millionpounds.com .

Dr. Schlundt acknowledged that information is limited about the association between body weight and seat belt use. Even so, he said "effective preventive interventions are needed to promote seat belt use among overweight and obese persons. The strength of our findings and their potential significance to public health underscore our new understanding of how the obesity epidemic in the US is related to preventable death and injury due to motor vehicle crashes."

About the Meharry-State Farm Alliance

The Meharry-State Farm Alliance is a joint venture of Meharry Medical College, an historically black academic health center in Nashville, Tenn., and State Farm, which insures more cars than any other insurer in North America and is the leading U.S. home insurer. State Farm's 17,000 agents and 69,000 employees serve nearly 73 million auto, fire and health policies in the United States and Canada. Established in 2002, the Meharry-State Farm Alliance focuses on research, education and public policy to reduce preventable deaths, injuries, and long-term disabilities from vehicle crashes.