Yale Rudd Center featured in HBO series on obesity crisis

Researchers from the Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity will be featured in a multi-part series on HBO that addresses the national obesity epidemic.

Rudd Center director Kelly Brownell, deputy director Marlene Schwartz, director of research Rebecca Puhl, and director of marketing initiatives Jennifer Harris will join other notable names in obesity research and prevention to discuss one of the nation’s most pressing health issues and offer practical but far-reaching solutions.

The series, “The Weight of the Nation,” premieres on Monday, May 14, and Tuesday, May 15.

“The HBO series captures the extent and consequences of obesity, possible solutions, and the touching human stories of the people affected,” Brownell said. “The films are powerful and much needed as the nation searches for ways to address this key issue.”

“The Weight of the Nation” spotlights the facts and myths of this urgent public health issue, showing how obesity affects the health of the nation and cripples the health care system. Type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer, and arthritis are just a few of the diseases directly linked to obesity — which will dramatically increase, Brownell adds, if the status quo does not change.

The series is produced by HBO and the Institute of Medicine in association with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institutes of Health, in partnership with the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation and Kaiser Permanente.

For more information on the series and the nationwide community-based outreach initiative that accompanies it, visit the website.