Overweight Videos - The Documentary Network

The Weight of the Nation – Part 4: Challenges (HBO Series)

Documentary.net staff — Tue, 17 Jul 2012 09:24:08 +0000

The final film of the series examines the origins and severity of the obesity epidemic, examines its major driving forces and looks at opportunities for communities to fight back. Obesity is a very serious medical condition, no longer viewed as strictly an issue of cosmetics. It’s a contributing factor in the death and disability of too many of our neighbors, friends and family members, and its societal costs are astronomical. Although overall obesity prevalence rates appear to be leveling off, there are still far too many Americans who are overweight or obese - approximately one-third of adults are obese and another third are overweight.

The Weight of the Nation – Part 3: Children in Crisis (HBO Series)

Documentary.net staff — Mon, 16 Jul 2012 10:41:02 +0000

Some experts fear this may be the first generation of American children who will have a shorter life expectancy than their parents. Childhood obesity is much more than a cosmetic concern. The health consequences of childhood obesity include greater risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, asthma and other serious illnesses. The combination of these health effects and the dramatic increase in childhood obesity rates over the past three decades causes some experts to fear this may be the first generation of American children who will have a shorter life expectancy than their parents.

The Weight of the Nation – Part 2: Choices (HBO Series)

Documentary.net staff — Mon, 16 Jul 2012 05:17:47 +0000

The second film in the series poses a question that almost anyone who’s struggled with excess weight has asked, if only in jest: For all the remarkable high-tech tools available to medicine, for all the billions of dollars in drug research, there’s still no highly effective medication to prevent or reverse obesity – why?

The Weight of the Nation – Part 1: Consequences (HBO Series)

Documentary.net staff — Mon, 16 Jul 2012 05:02:55 +0000

Obesity in America has reached a catastrophic level. Almost every aspect of our lives is threatened. The first step toward ending the damage is learning how to fight back. The first film in 'The Weight of the Nation' 4-part series examines the scope of the obesity epidemic and explores the serious health consequences of being overweight or obese. The obesity epidemic is a problem that's emerged over the last 30 years. It threatens our nation's social, economic and physical health. But, unlike a natural disaster, obesity is often preventable. Although overall obesity prevalence rates appear to be leveling off, there are still far too many Americans who are overweight or obese and who continue to develop health problems as a result. In order to end the epidemic, everyone must be part of the solution. At the level of our DNA, we're programmed to eat as much as we can to survive and store the extra as fat for future energy use. In a world where calorie-dense, sugar-laden and fatty foods are available around every corner, that's a problem. The good news is that, even if the propensity to gain weight is written into our genes, we're not fated to a lifetime of fat. As we take a look at communities across the country - from New York City to Santa Ana, California - it is clear that we have all been getting heavier. But the problem doesn't affect all communities equally. The sad fact is that obesity rates are higher in some ethnic communities and in lower-income states. The trends are so extreme that they are attracting the attention of health officials and lawmakers. Obesity among children is also rising, and it's a real threat that may have lasting health consequences. As Anna Busby says, based on her observations as the nurse of the Bogalusa Middle School Health Clinic, overweight and obese children are at risk of being "on dialysis in their thirties if we don't do something now." The good news is that we can make a difference in our children's lives both now and as they get older by helping them adopt healthy eating behaviors and become more active.