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Obese drivers 'more likely to die in crashes'

24/12/2010

Obese people suffer an increased risk of dying in severe car crashes, new research has suggested. The study by the University of Buffalo School of Medicine and Biomedical Services found that a moderately obese driver has a 21% increased risk of death if involved in a severe accident, while for a morbidly obese driver this was elevated to a 56% increased risk of fatality. However, the study, which is to be published in the American Journal of Emergency Medicine, also found that drivers who are underweight or of normal weight are also more likely to die than those who are slightly overweight. It analysed data from more than 150,000 appropriate crashes contained in the database of the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), seeking to establish whether there was any relationship between the driver's body size and the likelihood of death. Using BMI (body mass index) statistics, the study grouped drivers into six weight categories. In addition to the overall findings, the research noted that, when broken down by gender, the two heaviest categories - moderately obese and morbidly obese - still showed statistically significant increases in the likelihood of fatality, in comparison to drivers of a normal weight. First author of the study, Dietrich Jehle, who is professor of emergency medicine at the university, and at Erie County Medical Centre, made a range of suggestions to how vehicle manufacturers can help to mitigate this increased risk of death for overweight drivers. These include extending the range of adjustability in seats, and encouraging larger drivers to buy cars with more room between the seat and the steering column. Jehle also notes that if crash test dummies were introduced which "represented our overweight American society" there would be an improvement in vehicle design, benefitting the estimated one-third of the US population who are obese. Jehle added: "The rate of obesity is continuing to rise, so it is imperative that car designs are modified to protect the obese population." According to NHS figures, in 2008 24% of UK men and 25% of women were classified as obese. This had increased from 13% and 16%, respectively, since 1993.

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