This paper is the first to use the method of instrumental variables (IV) to estimate the impact of obesity on medical … weight as a natural experiment, yields estimates of the impact of obesity on medical costs that are considerably higher than … the correlations reported in the previous literature. For example, obesity is associated with $676 higher annual medical …

In response to the dramatic rise in childhood obesity, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and other organizations …-2004. Results from IV models indicate that PE lowers BMI z-score and reduces the probability of obesity among 5th graders (in … represents some of the first evidence of a causal effect of PE on youth obesity, and thus offers at least some support to the …

This paper is the first to use the method of instrumental variables to estimate the causal impact of youth obesity on U … the BMI of the child's biological mother. IV estimates indicate that obesity raises annual medical care costs by $1 …,354 (in 2013 dollars) or 159%, which is considerably higher than previous estimates of the association of youth obesity with …