360Digest

University of Washington researchers recently found wide disparities in obesity rates among King County ZIP codes. The rates range from less than 10 percent in parts of central Seattle and Bellevue to more than 25 percent in some south county neighborhoods.

(From The Seattle Post-Intelligencer)

The strongest predictor of obesity rates wasn’t income or education but property values, the study found. Each additional $100,000 in median home value for a ZIP code corresponded with a drop in obesity of 2 percentage points.

It’s further evidence, experts say, that weight isn’t solely about individual behavior and that the environment you live in matters.

As the Seattle P-I notes in “Overweight? Blame your zipcode”:

“If you have this mind-set that obesity has to do with the individual alone, then ZIP codes or areas really should not come into this. But they do, big-time,” said Adam Drewnowski, director of the UW Center for Obesity Research.

It’s common sense that a lack of access to fresh produce and nutritious groceries, plus an excess of fast-food restaurants, might contribute to packing on the pounds. Add that to being in a neighborhood that might be unsafe to walk or exercise, and the result is the residents tend to be overweight.

“Seattle, home of the 10,000 Microsoft millionaires, Costco, Amazon.com, Nordstrom and numerous other “trendy” shops and companies, will lead the country in home price growth in 2006.” Wow.

Realtor.org forecast by economist Lawrence Yun

For a completely different point of view, Seattle Real Estate Bubble Blog

With the Seahawks win last week, Paul Allen is becoming quite the cultural icon, even outside of Seattle. He even rated a feature in the New York Times. Paul Allen / New York Times.

Have you heard about Alex Mayer’s film, Paul Alien? It’s a mockumentary film that proves the billionaire is collaborating with space aliens hell-bent on seizing control of earth. Ha ha ha ha….. Paul Alien - The Movie.

Unfortunately, Alex’s other endeaver, the blog “The Tattler” has ceased cyberspace publication. But you can read past entries here…..The Tattler. Scroll to the very beginning to read her biting remarks about the zillionth rerun of “Almost Live”. The funny thing is, you see the old stars of that show around town, and they’ve aged, but their TV-counterparts haven’t at all. Yikes!