Buried in the current debate over healthcare reform is the fact that 70% of our health care spending is to treat “lifestyle-related chronic disease.” That’s a polite way of saying that two-thirds of our healthcare costs are due to Americans getting fatter. And THAT is just an incredible statement, which I would not believe except that it came from Ross DeVol and his crack economic team over at the Milken Institute.

Even worse, for every dollar we spend on healthcare, we lose three to four times as much in lost productivity. This is through absenteeism (sick days), “presenteeism” (when sick people show up for work to avoid losing pay and then perform below par); and time off for care-giving.

Taken together, the healthcare and lost-productivity costs of chronic disease now add up to a trillion-dollar a year hit to the U.S. economy. Half of all Americans now suffer from a chronic disease. Two-thirds of us are overweight or obese. Things are only getting worse, since obesity spreads like a social epidemic.

The single most effective way to promote affordable healthcare and economic growth is to give people financial incentives for healthy behavior.  One organization which is leading the way on tying financial incentives to reducing obesity is the Harlem Children’s Zone, under the leadership of its visionary CEO, Geoffrey Canada. Unfortunately, the healthcare legislation taking shape in Congress reflects the view that people should not be responsible for their own unhealthy behavior. This is a huge missed opportunity.

Let’s you and I do our part.  We each can resolve to make healthy choices.

I know that for my own family, this is easier said than done. Having recently had a baby, I’ve got another 15 to lose. We’re working to ease my husband from his KitKat-cheeseburger-beer “old Dave” ways, and that is an ongoing process. As for our daughter, we’ll try to raise her with healthy habits from the start.

You in?