There was an interesting Radio 4 programme on recently regarding the philosophical ideas that inform the debate on offering incentives to people to live healthy lifestyles. It may not be available to those outside the UK unfortunately, but if you can access it, it's well worth a listen. linkydink Mitch
If the natural benefits aren't enough for someone and you really want them to be healthy for some reason, that's what you should do. I don't get it though. Just worry about your own health and help those who actually want it.
Absolutely we should reward those with better health habits. Most companies in the US now ding employees who smoke with higher health premiums. Soon they will be going after obesity and High blood pressure. Take care of yourself and they reward you with health club memberships, lower premiums
Looking for cash Lardy? My initial thought is that if being the butt of social jokes and isolation, decreased longevity and reduced quality of life isn't enough to get them to take more charge of their health then I don't think £20 for losing a pound will cut it.
Let's face it we already bribe people to stop smoking, bribe people to stop drinking and bribe people to eat less. It's called "Not paying for fags", "Not paying for booze" and "Not paying for takeaways".
Well, bribes could be less costly then paying to care for them when their health deteriorates, or covering their inevitable sick time.
Its an interesting topic... perhaps, but if people did not have the willpower to go through with it, they could still take the money - imagine how much fraud there would be! I think that althought it would cost a lot of money, the money saved on healthcare would outweigh this.
I'm building my fortune in an alternative way In the discussion they mention a programme where people were paid to lose weight. Someone speaks who lost 5 stone (I think) and thus "earned" hundreds of £. The claim was made that this is a good way of incentivising people to lead a more healthy lifestyles, and that those who lost weight on the scheme were successful in keeping it off. This saves money in healthcare etc. Conversely, you can argue that it rewards their previous "bad behaviour," or that their weight is nobody else's business. Mitch
Difficult one, as a naturally skinny guy, it rubs me wrong that I'll never have that opportunity, it also displays a blinkered understanding of good health. No I don't think weight loss alone would be how I would choose to implement this.
If you pay people something per pound/kilo/stone they lose, do they have to pay it back when they put the weight on again? I can see that being a winner for the Treasury - when they're running low on cash, the government can cut all subsidised access to leisure centres etc. and stick an extra tax on healthy food, then watch the revenue flow in (always assuming they can get the weight gainers to pay up.....).
Most companies in the US that have a wellness program tests yearly for nicotine in in the blood tests, cholesterol, BMI, etc. Its actually not very easy to cheat for very long.
From The Encyclopedia Of Indian Physical Culture (circa 1950): Bribe them? Right above, they are being menaced by the wrath of God and that of their Government! Osu!
Absolutely not. Defining a healthy lifestyle is tricky at best, anyone who's seen how the food industry operates will have seen plenty of examples of twisting studies through various means for financial reasons rather than scientific. The exercise industry is not much different with most products having very little evidence and a lot of the common wisdom is often anecdotal and fails to stand up to scrutiny. If we paid people to use healthy products we would be bribing them to spend money on whatever company is currently running the best publicity.
Definitely not. People need to take person responsibility. I am trying to "lose weight" and I don't expect anyone to hold my hand. If being healthier, more active, having a better sex life, having more confidence, and not having health problems isn't a good enough incentive then nothing is going to help.
This is a point, I'm sure if me or Gary had or diets looked at we'd be slammed in the unhealthy collum for eating a bunch of fat and limiting carbs. No doubt BMI would be looked at too... I like the idea of a yearly or more often nicotine etc test though.
I wonder if anyone else read this in the Guardian today. Possible Darwin Award, at best this real idiocy. How could you not know this was very unhealthy? http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/apr/20/coca-cola-new-zealanders-death