CHOCOLATE & WINE TASTING at Cowan

You're invited to another Xocai and Cowan Tasting at the Cowan Family Vineyards tasting room in Woodinville on Thursday, October 29 from 6:30-8pm.  

CHOCOLATE PARTY

We're back in full swing and our weekly Chocolate Parties will begin Wednesday, 10/28 at 7pm.  Stop in to Xocai Central 1 1250 - 112th Ave. NE, Bellevue, any Wednesday for a sampling of the world's finest cold-pressed, , life enhancing, truly gourmet Belgian chocolate.  

Seattle Home Show

Lifesaver Chocolate will be at Seattle Home Show 2 from October 22-25, 2009. Visit www.seattlehomeshow.com for event details. We will be handing out free Power Square samples and be sure to enter our drawing for 25 free Xocai Nuggets.

Is Being Fat Contagious?

Is Being Fat Contagious?

No. Really? When our friends get fat, we get fat.

Two distinguished researchers spent five years looking at the 5,000+ participants of the Framingham Heart Study (begun in 1948 and continued for two generations) to see what the effects of the relationships among the participants was. Here's their stunning discovery:

Obesity spreads more by association than genes.

"In 1948 fewer than 10% of Framingham residents were obese. By 1985, 18% were, and today about 40% are. What changed? Social norms of diet and physical appearance." Wired, Oct 2009

By studying the Framingham folks as an interconnected network rather than a mass of individuals, the two researchers made this intriguing discovery:

Obesity spread like a virus. Weight gain had a stunning infection rate. If one person become obese, the likelihood that his friend would follow suit increased by 171 percent.

And, your friends are more predictive of your size than your spouse:

"Having an obese spouse raised the risk of becoming obese by 37 percent. If a friend became obese, the risk skyrocketed by 171 percent."

Moral: hang out with friends who are or are getting to the size you want to be. ER Fat Burn club anyone?

It works for happiness, too, they say.