This is why we're here.

We don't raise money for charities, we're not the racing types, and we don't make money on Take the Lake.

So, why do we spend hundreds of hours each year encouraging our fellow Columbus Countians to run, walk, paddle, cycle or swim Lake Waccamaw? Why are we so passionate about Take the lake? 

Columbus is the least healthy of all of the 100 counties in North Carolina, and has been every year since the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of Wisconsin have been tracking County Health Rankings. We are the least healthy county in one of the least healthy states in a nation that is in a health crisis.

A few years ago, HBO Documentary Films, the Institute of Medicine, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the National Institutes of Health produced a comprehensive series of four full-length documentaries called "Weight of the Nation." These films clearly and thoroughly explain the situation we are in.

From these four films, they extracted 12 shorts that make for easy viewing. We strongly recommend that community leaders watch the full-length films, and that everyone at least watch some or all of the shorts.

You can dive into the whole program here, but below are some of the films from which we think our friends here can benefit the most. 

Watch this short trailer with statistics on our problem.

WATCH or LISTEN?

There is a lot of material here, with at least five hours of the main films and the children's shorts.

Who has that time?

I found it useful to stream these films in a small window as I did other work. The message is mostly in the audio, and an occasional glance helps it all sink in. 

M.G.


For other films on this subject, visit our Links Page.

These four shorts explain the perils of obesity in our society.

Obesity and Type 2 Diabetes (15 min.)

Healthy Mom, Healthy Baby (30 min.)

Can Excess Weight Lead to Heart Disease? (22 min.)

Stigma: The Human Cost of Obesity (19 min.)

These three shorts show us ways to get out of this crisis.

How Wellness Programs Can Help the Workforce (19 min.)

Nashville Takes Action (19 min.)

Healthy Foods and Obesity Prevention (31 min.)

NEW! Here are three shorts for children.
(Watch the trailer at right.)

Kebreeya's Salad Days (27 min.)

The Great Cafeteria Takeover (30 min.)

Quiz Ed! (32 min.)

Here are the four main films. 
(Watch the trailer at right.)

Consequences (1:08)

Choices (1:13)

Children in Crisis (1:07)

Challenges (1:08)

Where to show these movies?

Church groups
Civic groups
Schools
Senior Centers
Scout groups

​Meanwhile, a good place to start is the program's Digital Assets page, where you'll find more than 20 "Key" really short (a minute or so) videos. Each one gets a very important point across, so watch them, email the links, and tell your friends – embed them in your Facebook page (...one each day?) 

Download the Film Discussion Guides.