Overeating and time-preference - Why consume towards overweight?

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There are many theories of time preference that are relevant for the problem of overweight. The DU-model explains how declining utility profiles can be consistent with an individual??s preferences. Such profiles are achieved through overeating and overweight. Through applying overweightness on Becker and Mulligan??s model (1997) with endogenous time preferences, possible directions of causality are investigated. It is concluded that overweight may well cause low discount factors. When considering state-specific discount rates, the possible directions are many and contradictive. The problems many people face with getting started with a diet is explained through a model which includes anticipation of outcomes. It is suggested that the utility an individual derives from anticipating future outcomes may be crucial for starting a diet. Lack of self-control is a frequently stated reason for over-eating. Discount functions that are hyperbolic or differ across goods cause inconsistent time-preference which make people reverse their choices and give in to temptations. Thus, people who continue to overeat although they find that the costs are too high may well have hyperbolic discount functions or different discount rates for different goods. The affect of promptly available food items is predicted to be harmful for hyperbolic individuals. Finally, framing outcomes within sequences reveal preferences that overshadow the effect of discounting. It is found that preference for improving sequences and deter...