Eating a healthy diet dramatically reduces the risk of many illnesses and makes many more other ailments easier to treat but a healthy diet alone will do little to reduce the premium rates of an insurance policy. Individual insurance premium rates are based on mathematical formulas that determine how likely a policyholder will be to cash in on the policy by filing a claim. Even so, eating healthy does influence insurance premiums in an indirect way.

One reason a lifestyle of eating healthy is not a direct factor in determining insurance rates is that a healthy diet is quite difficult to quantify. One person’s concept of a healthy diet may seem hedonistic to the next or entirely too austere for someone else. Even members of the medical profession offer conflicting information on dietary matters so there remains no one-size-fits-all healthy diet to use as a standard of measure against all others.

The merits of eating a healthy diet may become obvious in a much more indirect way, however, so keep it in mind when comparing insurance quotes for any type insurance. Rates are based on age but other issues, such as weight and family medical history, come into play, too.

The actuarial tables that are used to determine insurance rates are based on weight as well as age. Individuals who fall below the desired weight range are more prone to suffer from health issues which shorten their lives as are people who fall in the category of overweight or obese. A low weight can be unhealthy, but the more often than not in today’s society excess weight is a more prevalent concern.

Excess weight can trigger medical conditions such as metabolic syndrome, diabetes, high blood pressure, and cardiovascular disease. All these conditions jeopardize a person’s quality of life and longevity.

Family history may be a contributing factor to one’s predisposition to develop any of these medical conditions but a lifestyle of eating nutritious foods can minimize the chance they will develop in an individual and can usually make the disorder much easier to treat or maintain once it’s developed. Adherence to a healthy diet is usually reflected in one’s weight even when family history appears ominous.

People who enjoy a nutritious diet are more likely to exercise routinely, too, and this factor also boosts vitality, strengthens the immune system, and adds years of quality to a life span. This correlation is taken into consideration whenever insurance quotes are calculated.

When rates are determined, dietary and exercise habits will not be recognized as a point for point advantage in premium rate reduction but their existence will become the advantage when weight is compared against age and family history. An applicant of the same age and with similar family medical history who is of healthy weight will almost always be quoted cheaper rates than someone of the same age and family history but who is not in the healthy range category.

George Pettit is a journalist and financial specialist from Australia. He writes for several magazines about topics such as real estate, investments, life insurance, currency trading and much other which attract attention of many readers.