Your zip code is making you fat
Sep. 2nd, 2007 09:24 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
tikistitch(tiki went out for Mexican last night, so we're in a chubby mood this morning.)
One big weakness of this study is that in fact they only looked at zip codes inside King County, basically, Seattle and the surrounding 'burbs. (The news releases always make it seem like it's national, which is why we were surprised about this.) And BRFSS is a survey (and a phone survey at that) so they're just using self-reported weight, and people lie like mad weasels about their weight.
But, it's still a really cool twist: it's pretty well known that obesity is associated with income, and that poor people tend to be fatter. This study brought in property values, which is not just an indicator of income, but of wealth. Why should this be interesting to anyone but us science geeks? Well, one obstacle minorities in this country face is that the individuals might earn as much as their neighbors, but they're often less likely to have assets--that is, to own a home or have money in the bank. So, you're going along fine, but then something unexpected hits, like a job loss or a major illness, and BOOM, look ma, no safety net. NINJA loans aside, folks in neighborhoods where there's a lot of pricey houses tend to not only be raking in the income, but are also far more likely to have some personal wealth.
And, they're less likely to be fat.
As with all things where there are scientists (and research grant money) involved, there is some disagreement on the mechanism here. Drewnowski, the lead author, has been quoted in other articles positing that it's partly because feeding the kiddies crap like Chicken McNuggets is cheaper than shopping for heirloom tomatoes and Whole Foods. There might also be some twists on this: it's pretty well documented that overweight people have more trouble getting promoted at their jobs, and thus tend to earn less income.
Anyways, this study gets the prize for "neat idea we wish we'd thought of first" for the week, though we hate analyzing surveys just on principle, and, anyways, looking at the Methods, the statistics are waaaaay beyond our poor ken.
Home Value and ZIP Code Predict Obesity Rates
SEATTLE, Aug. 30 -- ZIP codes and property values will provide a better handle on the scope of the nation's obesity problem than income, race, or education, investigators here found.
Property values proved to be the best predictor of obesity prevalence, Adam Drewnowski, Ph.D., of the University of Washington here, and colleagues reported online and in the September issue of Social Science & Medicine.
And, within a given ZIP code, each $100,000 increase in median home value was associated with a 2% decline in obesity prevalence (P<0.001), the researchers said.
Examination of obesity prevalence by ZIP code revealed a six-fold difference between the most socioeconomically deprived and the most affluent areas. The disparity in obesity rates by ZIP code exceeded those associated with income or race/ethnicity.
One big weakness of this study is that in fact they only looked at zip codes inside King County, basically, Seattle and the surrounding 'burbs. (The news releases always make it seem like it's national, which is why we were surprised about this.) And BRFSS is a survey (and a phone survey at that) so they're just using self-reported weight, and people lie like mad weasels about their weight.
But, it's still a really cool twist: it's pretty well known that obesity is associated with income, and that poor people tend to be fatter. This study brought in property values, which is not just an indicator of income, but of wealth. Why should this be interesting to anyone but us science geeks? Well, one obstacle minorities in this country face is that the individuals might earn as much as their neighbors, but they're often less likely to have assets--that is, to own a home or have money in the bank. So, you're going along fine, but then something unexpected hits, like a job loss or a major illness, and BOOM, look ma, no safety net. NINJA loans aside, folks in neighborhoods where there's a lot of pricey houses tend to not only be raking in the income, but are also far more likely to have some personal wealth.
And, they're less likely to be fat.
As with all things where there are scientists (and research grant money) involved, there is some disagreement on the mechanism here. Drewnowski, the lead author, has been quoted in other articles positing that it's partly because feeding the kiddies crap like Chicken McNuggets is cheaper than shopping for heirloom tomatoes and Whole Foods. There might also be some twists on this: it's pretty well documented that overweight people have more trouble getting promoted at their jobs, and thus tend to earn less income.
Anyways, this study gets the prize for "neat idea we wish we'd thought of first" for the week, though we hate analyzing surveys just on principle, and, anyways, looking at the Methods, the statistics are waaaaay beyond our poor ken.
