title: Investing in a healthy lifestyle strategy: is it worth it?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  In Quebec, various actors fund activities aimed at increasing physical activity, improving eating habits and reducing smoking. The objective was to evaluate how effective does the healthy lifestyle habits promotion (HLHP) strategy need to be to make to offset its costs.
  
  
  METHODS
  First, we built the logic model of the HLHP strategy. We then assessed the strategy's total cost as well as the direct health care expenditures associated with lifestyle-related risk factors (smoking, physical inactivity, insufficient intake of fruits and vegetables, obesity and overweight). Finally, we estimated the break-even point beyond which the economic benefits of the HLHP strategy would outweigh its costs.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The HLHP strategy cost for 2010-2011 was estimated at $110 million. Direct healthcare expenditures associated with lifestyle-related risk factors were estimated at $4.161 billion. We estimated that 47 % of these expenditures were attributable to these risk factors.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We concluded that the HLHP strategy cost corresponded to 5.6 % of the annual healthcare expenditures attributable to these risk factors. This study compared the economic value of HLHP activities against healthcare expenditures associated with targeted risk factors.
authors: Institute for Health and Social Policy, McGill University, Meredith, Charles House, 1130 Pine Avenue West Montreal, Montreal, QC, H3A 1A3, Canada. tarik.benmarhnia@mcgill.ca.
authors: Tarik
authors: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5012-7198
authors: T
authors: Benmarhnia
authors: Centre de recherche de l'hôpital Charles-LeMoyne, Community health sciences department, Université de Sherbrooke, Longueuil, QC, Canada.
authors: Pierre-Alexandre
authors: PA
authors: Dionne
authors: Department de Sciences Infirmières, Universté du Québec en Outaouais, Gatineau, QC, Canada.
authors: Éric
authors: É
authors: Tchouaket
authors: Institut national d'excellence en santé et en services sociaux (INESSS), Quebec, Canada.
authors: Alvine K
authors: AK
authors: Fansi
authors: Centre de recherche de l'hôpital Charles-LeMoyne, Community health sciences department, Université de Sherbrooke, Longueuil, QC, Canada.
authors: Astrid
authors: A
authors: Brousselle
mesh_terms: D003362:Cost-Benefit Analysis; D000072001:Diet, Healthy; D005102:Health Expenditures; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000191:economics*; D000070497:Healthy Lifestyle; D006801:Humans; D015233:Models, Statistical; D009765:Obesity / Q000517:prevention & control; D011792:Quebec; D012307:Risk Factors; D000074606:Smoking Prevention
keywords: Attributable fraction; Burden of disease; Economic benefits; Economic evaluation; Health policy; Healthy lifestyle habits promotion; Public health; Return on investment; Risk factors