Kaiser Permanente Co-Sponsors HBO’s Four-Hour Weight of the Nation Series on Obesity
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Kaiser Permanente announced in January that it is co-sponsoring with the Institute of Medicine (IOM) a major TV documentary series on the nation’s obesity epidemic, entitled The Weight of the Nation, on the HBO channels beginning in May. As sponsors of the series, Kaiser Permanente and the Institute of Medicine (IOM) are joined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Institutes of Health, and the Michael and Susan Dell Foundation.
The series, produced over a three-year period by HBO in collaboration with its sponsors, comprises four documentary films, a three-part HBO Family series, 14 bonus shorts, a social media campaign, a book published by St. Martin’s Press, and a nationwide community-based outreach campaign to support the initiative. The four-part documentary series will be broadcast May 14 and 15, followed on May 16 by the three-part HBO Family series. The entire broadcast will also be available free of charge via internet streaming on HBO.com, as well as on numerous other platforms by participating television service providers.
The four hour-long documentaries feature hard-hitting examinations of the health consequences of obesity and being overweight as well as science-based information on weight loss and weight maintenance. It also features in-depth coverage of the causes of childhood obesity, including nutritionally poor school lunches, the decline of physical education classes, and the marketing of junk food to children. Each of the four films features vivid, real-life case studies and interviews with leading experts, individuals and families struggling with obesity, and with leaders of innovative community action initiatives.
To leverage the impact of the broadcasts, Kaiser Permanente and its partners will sponsor the distribution of 40,000 community action kits to community-based obesity-prevention organizations. The kits will include the entire video series, discussion guides in English and Spanish, and tips and supplemental materials for hosting community screenings.
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