By Lee Hyo-sik
A recent survey has found an interesting correlation between financial success and weight, yet with contrasting results for men and women.
According to a medical study by the department of family medicine at Dongguk University Ilsan Hospital, overweight men make more money than their slimmer counterparts, while more overweight Korean women earn smaller paychecks.
“After analyzing the obesity levels of a group of men and women, we found that income levels of the men increased as their weight increased. But it was the opposite for women,” said Prof. Oh Sang-woo who led the study.
The study was based on the body mass index (BMI), a measurement which compares weight and height. It defines people as possibly overweight or pre-obese, if their BMI is between 25 and 30, and obese when it is greater than 30.
The study found that the monthly earnings of males go up the more they weigh. Men with a BMI below 18.5 made an average of 2.25 million won ($2,000) per month, while those with a BMI of between 25 and 29.9 earned a monthly average of 3.24 million won. Overly obese men whose BMI exceeded 35 took home 4.76 million won on average.
Contradicting this, overweight females were found to earn less than their slimmer counterparts.
Women with a BMI below 18.5 received a monthly salary of 3.08 million won on average. But those with a BMI of between 25 and 29.9, and between 30 and 34.9 made an average of 2.38 million won and 1.98 million won, respectively.
The study also found a correlation between educational level and obesity among men and women. “Highly-educated men tend to be more overweight than the less-educated. But women with high academic achievements were found to be slimmer than poorly-educated ones,” he said.
About 2.5 percent of men who finished up to middle school were highly obese, while 4.6 percent of those who graduated from university and above weighed significantly more than they should.
But only 0.9 percent of women with degrees from university and graduate school were found to be obese, in contrast to 5 percent among those finishing only middle school.