Apparently Americans are more concerned with what they see in the mirror than on their credit card bills.


Nearly three-quarters of Americans would rather maintain their current debt levels[1] than gain 25 pounds and live debt free, according to a survey from Harris Interactive and Credit Karma released last month.


What’s more, 38 percent of Americans said they would choose clocking in at their “ideal weight” over avoiding bankruptcy, the survey found.


Altogether, 64 percent of Americans say they think about how they look more than they think about their debt, according to the Harris survey[2] , with adults 18-34 more likely to care about their looks than their older counterparts.


The findings are based on a June survey of 2,021 Americans[3] .


Depending on which way you look at it, the study either underscores the country's misplaced financial priorities or its obsession with body image. Today, more than a third of Americans[4] are obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control. But nearly 70 percent of U.S. households carried some kind of debt[5] in 2011, according to the Census Bureau, and 75 percent of Americans don’t have enough savings[6] to cover six months-worth of expenses, a June survey from Bankrate found.


(h/t Atlantic Business Chronicle[7] )



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  • 'Do You Want To Pay Now?'


    Bruce Folken was still "out of it" when a hospital employee entered his room and asked if he wanted "to pay now." Afraid the care he was being given would suffer if he said no, Folken agreed as the employee took his debit card from his wallet and charged him $493.60, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/18/hospital-debt-collection-health-care_n_1528124.html?ref=business#s609557&title=8_Affording_Minimum" target="_hplink">The Huffington Post</a> reports.




  • Cancer Survivor Sent To Debtors' Prison


    Breast cancer survivor<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/23/lisa-lindsay-breast-cancer-survivor-debtors-jail_n_1446391.html" target="_hplink"> Lisa Lindsay of Illinois was taken from her home in handcuffs and put in debtors' prison</a> over a $280 medical bill that was sent to her by accident. Eventually, she agreed to pay $600 just to settle the charges.




  • Unspeakable Debtor Threat


    According to the FTC, employees at one debt collection agency <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/13/debt-collectors-abusive-economy_n_1422107.html" target="_hplink">threatened a debtor</a> by saying they would "dig her daughter up and hang her from a tree if she did not pay the debt," <a href="http://bucks.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/10/26/f-t-c-claims-abusive-tactics-by-two-debt-collection-firms/" target="_hplink"><em>The New York Times</em></a> reports.




  • Impersonating Police Officers


    The West Virginia attorney general filed suits in April against seven debt collectors for <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/19/west-virginia-attorney-general-debt-collectors_n_1435549.html" target="_hplink">allegedly impersonating police officers</a> in order to harass borrowers who in some cases didn't even owe any money.




  • Debt Collectors Report Fake Suicide Threat


    Eighty-five year-old Anne Sessions spent hours in the hospital incurring a $1,055 medical bill when debt collectors called authorities to <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/10/anne-sessions-oregon-octogenarian-suing-debt-collector-fake-suicide_n_1269267.html" target="_hplink">falsely report that she was threatening suicide</a>. The debt collector reportedly asked her "how would you do it?"




  • Woman Jailed Over Car Accident Fees


    Colorado resident <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/20/debtors-prison-jail-for-a_n_880321.html" target="_hplink">Kelly Wiedemer spent four nights in debtors prison</a> in June 2011 when a police officer pulled her over for having unregistered plates and discovered she still owed money from an accident that happened in 2009. "I thought debtors' prison was supposed to be unconstitutional," Wiedemer said.




  • Debt Collectors Set Up Facebook Profiles


    Debt collectors will "<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/24/debt-collectors-facebook_n_1448792.html" target="_hplink">set up fake profiles and friend consumers on Facebook</a>, just to get into their personal information," according to one financial planner.




  • Rincon Charged With Threatening Non-Debtors


    The FTC charged Rincon and six other debt collection agencies for using threats and insults to try and collect money from <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/27/ftc-debt-collectors-federal-trade-commission_n_1033839.html" target="_hplink">people who didn't actually owe any</a>.




  • Phony Police Threats Terrify Couple


    When an official-sounding debt collector told Wayne and Brenda Foster they'd be dealing with police unless they paid up, the couple reached for their wallets. So did hundreds of others. But thanks to an FTC investigation of fake debt collectors, the <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/11/ftc-busts-scam-debt-collector_n_1418582.html" target="_hplink">multimillion dollar scheme to rip off consumers was shut down in April</a>.




  • 'Nice People Collect More'


    Turns out nice guys don't always finish last. Debt collector Access Receivables increased payments by 40 percent after adopting a new <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/01/access-receivables-nice-strategy_n_1467902.html" target="_hplink">"nice people" strategy emphasizing customer service</a>.