Ed Hinerman On Life Insurance

Take A Deep Breath! Exhale! Now, Think Happy Thoughts!

There are times when I wonder how any one in this world can live without have some degree of anxiety. I know I was just a kid back, but I don’t remember the 50’s and 60’s, or for that matter the 70’s being overly stressful.

Then came the 80’s with high interest, AIDS, and a host of other social issues that seemed like they were starting to tighten the screws just a bit on our relaxed lives. It was about that time that people started working longer hours, divorce started to skyrocket, and generally the stress of everyday life started becoming, well, anxiety producing. And it hasn’t let up.

Against that backdrop comes a study that indicates that anxiety is a stand alone risk factor for heart attacks. In a nutshell, all things being equal, a man who is suffering from chronic anxiety is 30-40% more likely to have a heart attack than someone who thinks happy thoughts. And that was for men who were in the top 15% of the scales they used to measure anxiety for this study. The higher a man’s score, the higher the likelihood that it could lead to cardiac issues.

It’s important to note that in this context, anxiety isn’t about being a little anxious or nervous, but rather a true anxiety disorder that manifests itself on several deep and serious levels.

Anxiety disorders and depression are looked at by life insurance underwriters in much the same way as bipolar disorder. Remember that the criteria for finding the best rates are that a person hasn’t been hospitalized in at least the last 10 years for the disorder, they’ve never attempted suicide, aren’t on disability due to the condition, are compliant with treatment, and are stable and functional. Maybe we should add that they haven’t had a recent stress related heart attack.

Bottom line. Our bodies and physical and emotional health are all interwoven far more than we can imagine. Stress, anxiety or depression, left unchecked can ruin our lives emotionally, and now we know that it can just flat out end our lives with a heart attack.

Add comment February 5th, 2008

Good News! It May Be Cheaper To Be Obese!

Well, I’ve got your good news and your bad news. You know how I’ve gone on and on about all of the collateral health issues attributable to obesity. Now there is a study that indicates that people who are obese may in fact have lower health care costs than people of normal weight.

That’s the good news. The bad news is that the reason the cost is lower over a lifetime for someone who is obese, is that they don’t live long enough on average to have to deal with the cost of old age health issues.

Now, plenty have argued that I may overstate the impact of weight on health and mortality, but this spin on it is just one more way of saying that obesity isn’t good for you. Obesity kills, and it kills prematurely. Premature death is the number one reason that people carry life insurance, so if you are overweight, before other health issues set in and start taking a toll, talk to an independent agent.

Bottom line. Fairly priced, affordable life insurance is available for people who are overweight. It becomes less so rapidly if health issues such as diabetes or heart disease are added to the plate. Consider the needs. Understand that it will never be more affordable than right now.

Add comment February 5th, 2008