Low-income people in King County appear to be significantly impacted by obesity. According to the King County Housing Authority, they suffer disproportionally from preventable diet and health related diseases such as diabetes and coronary heart disease.

According to surveys, 9 percent of middle and high school students in King County are obese and 13 percent are overweight. Additionally nearly 75 percent of youth in King County do not consume enough fruits and vegetables and only 39 percent are physically active.

Children who are obese have a greater likelihood remaining overweight through adulthood, because obesity is easier to prevent then it is to treat, says Linda Weedman, resident services director for the King County Housing Authority.

In response to this problem, the King County Housing Authority and the Seattle Housing Authority and Public Health have been awarded a $400,000 four-year grant from a national organization, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

"Typically, in lower-income communities opportunities for physical activity and healthy (eating) are considerably more limited," said Rhonda Rosenberg, spokesperson for the King County Housing Authority. "Our goal is to identify and make policy and environmental changes that can make a lasting difference."

The funds will be focused towards developing communities including High Point and White Center. Rosenberg explained that the sites include underserved groups that are ethnically and linguistically diverse, have a significant number of children and have on-site service providers who are ready to help implement environmental and social changes.

The Housing Authority is still determining how the grant will be spent, but Weedman says they hope to enhance the social aspect of public housing and provide better access to physical activities.

The grant is a part of the foundation's "Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities" initiative, a $44 million national program striving to find community-based solutions to childhood obesity. King County is one of nine leading sites to participate, but the foundation expects to include approximately 70 different communities before 2010.

"Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities" is the cornerstone of a $500 million commitment to reverse childhood obesity in the United States by 2015.

The eight other cities or regions named as leading sites include Baldwin Park, the Central Valley and Oakland in California, Chicago, Ill., Columbia, Mo., Louisville, Ky., Sommerville, Mass. and Washington D.C. Each site was chosen based on its strong leadership and will serve as models for other communities that join the initiative throughout 2009.

The King County Housing Authority welcomes community input regarding how the funds should be used. To contribute any ideas or feedback please contact Linda Weedman at 574-1225.

For more information please visit www.healthykidshealthycommunities.org or www.kcha.org.