Obese drivers face a higher risk of dying in serious car crashes, study finds

Obese drivers are more likely to die in a serious car wreck than drivers of normal weight, a new study says.

Researchers at the University at Buffalo in New York examined drivers’ body sizes and the number of car crash deaths between 2000 and 2005 from data in the Fatality Analysis Reporting System. The study calculated an increased risk factor of dying at 21% for moderately obese drivers and 56% for morbidly obese drivers.

The lead researcher says crash test dummies that are obese might help. “If they represented our overweight American society, there could be further improvements in vehicle design that could decrease mortality,” lead researcher Dr. Dietrich Jehle says in a statement.

Check out this news release that explains the study published online in the American Journal of Emergency Medicine.