Unhealthy Workforce Costs U.S. Economy $153 Billion

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Companies hungry for further evidence that corporate wellness programs are desperately needed in this country, chew on this: A new Gallup poll found that just one in seven workers in America is of normal body weight and free of chronic illness, potentially costing the U.S. economy $153 billion annually in lost productivity due to an estimated 450 combined sick days taken each year.

Conducted earlier this year, the survey of more than 100,000 working individuals indicates that two-thirds of the U.S. workforce is either overweight or obese, and nearly half of that population suffers from at least one chronic health problem. Survey participants self-reported their own height and weight, leading Gallup pollsters to conclude - given the tendency for people to overestimate their height and underestimate their weight - that the numbers could be even worse.

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