BMJ  2006;332:916 (15 April), doi:10.1136/bmj.332.7546.916-c

Letter

New disease: motivational deficiency disorder

Study ignores economic benefits

EDITOR—As a sufferer of motivational deficiency disorder (MoDeD) I felt compelled to respond to the news item by Moynihan.1 Then I decided, why bother? But I finally roused myself to take issue with the estimates of the economic costs of the disorder. This ignores the fact that MoDeD sufferers are responsible for an estimated 35% of consumption of snack foods, 40% of viewing of all reality TV shows, and 45% of all purchases of popular music. In addition, MoDeD sufferers produce 35% fewer greenhouse gases because of their tendencies to stay at home. A more comprehensive analysis of the full economic impact of MoDeD should be done, preferably by someone other than me.


Figure 1
 Credit: ALEX & IAILA/STONE & GETTY

 

David Atkins, health services researcher

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD 20850, USA david.atkins{at}comcast.net

Competing interests: None declared.

References

  1. Moynihan R. Scientists find new disease: motivational deficiency disorder. BMJ 2006;332: 745. (1 April.)[Free Full Text]

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