Have you seen the documentary Fed Up? Its an eye-opener

[AbsentMindedNumpty]

My DS has added me to his Netflix account so I can watch films. I was looking at the choices (so many!) and saw that it also has documentaries. I was intrigued at one particular one; Fed Up. I watched it in growing horror and anger. Although it relates to the USA, its message affects us all, wherever we live in the world. Do you have a weight problem, are you a yo yo dieter? Do you crave sugary stuff? I know I do.

I have written below a synopsis of the documentary if you don’t have access to Netflix or don’t want to watch it. I have split it into chunks to make it easier to read .

PART ONE

This documentary investigates why, despite a multi-billion £/$ diet and fitness industry that has sprung up over the last 30-40 years to combat overweight, we are actually fatter than ever before, even young children are being affected. This documentary focuses on the USA issue but it is relevant to everyone, world-wide.

PART TWO

Dr Mark Hyman, Chair of the Institute of Functional Medicine points out that the message “eat less, exercise more” is actually incorrect. Flawed research by a Dr Jean Mayer in the 1950’s, that lack of exercise caused weight gain started the beginnings of a fitness revolution, which is still in place today; now a multi-billion £/$ industry.

So why, in tandem with this, did obesity also increase, not just in the USA but worldwide?

Dr Robert Lustig, Professor of Paediatrics at the University of California, has taken a special interest in this phenomena since he has witnessed a massive increase in childhood obesity over the years, even in babies.

Firstly, a calorie is not a calorie. Why? The example given is if you consume a 160 calorie serving of almonds, the fibre within it won’t be absorbed and the blood sugar rise is low and for a longer period. If you drink 160 calories of a soft drink, because there is no fibre it goes straight to the liver to be absorbed causing a big sugar rush which in turn causes the liver to turn the excess sugar straight into fat. So, both 160 calories, but one is turned straight into fat.

PART THREE

Michelle Simon, President of Eat Drink Politics, talks about how the food industry fights voraciously to protect its members from any restrictions to its marketing and selling food to consumers.

Marian Nestle, Professor of Nutrition at New York University agrees and points out that the food industry’s job is to sell more food. One way for them to silence criticism is to co-opt potential critics, for example, a soft drink company will fund university research, leading to a recent major study which concluded that soft drinks to not lead to obesity.

The American Academy of Family Physicians, in partnership with the soft drink company, actually came to this conclusion and, as a result, twenty doctors from the AAFC resigned in disgust publicly stating “how could any organisation that claims to promote public health join forces with a company promotes products that put our children at risk”.

Dr David Allison, whose research is funded by soft drinks companies, attempts then to justify his belief that there is not yet enough evidence to conclude that soft drinks contribute to obesity. He flounders and is not able to explain his position.

That’s because there is overwhelming medical evidence that soft drinks (and sugar in general) is metabolised into fat by the liver if it cannot cope with the excess sugar.

If diets worked there wouldn't be a multi billion $ industry.

So it really doesn't surprise me at all. I'm overweight and I know what I need to do to lose weight, it's just doing it that's the problem.

PART FOUR

The programme then talks about the different adult health problems that children are now presenting with as a result of their obesity. In the USA in 1980 there were no cases of type 2 diabetes in adolescents. Fast forward to 2010, thirty years later and there are 57,638 registered cases of type 2 diabetes.

A pivotal moment occurred in 1977 when the McGovern Report was published, it was commissioned to look at the connection between heart disease and diet. It warned that obesity would become the number one form of malnutrition in the USA.

The report highlighted that the US diet had become overly rich in fatty meats and saturated fat and sugar. The egg, sugar, dairy and beef industry united together and rejected the report pressing for a revision, which was eventually given, with the removal of the words “reduced intake”. The report also suggested instead that consumers should buy leaner products and products with less fat.

A new industry was born, with every food product re-engineered to be “healthier” and “lower fat”. Now, the food industry knew that taking the fat out of food causes it to taste unpleasant, so sugar was added to improve the taste.

Between 1977 and 2000 Americans doubled their daily intake of sugar. Dr Robert Lustig stated that “sugar is poison; it is a chronic dose-dependent pepido liver toxin. Metabolic diseases associated with obesity; diabetes, heart disease, lipid problems, strokes, cancers are being driven by sugar.”

We ignore this at our peril.

PART FIVE

Fructose, the sweet part of sugar, can only be processed in the liver.

When your liver is pushed to the maximum, your pancreas comes to the rescue by producing insulin. Known as the Energy Storing Hormone, insulin turns the sugar into fat for storage. High levels of insulin block your brain into receiving the signal that you’re full.

The behaviours associated with obesity (eating too much, exercising too little, gluttony, sloth) are the result of the biochemistry not the cause.

There are 600,000 food items in supermarkets in USA; 80% have added sugar. When you eat sugar naturally, for example, as a piece of fruit, you are eating the fibre needed to mitigate the negative effects. This is why fruit juice is so dangerous.

Full fat soft drinks trigger hormonal responses explained above, but so to the diet versions.

Dr David Kessler talks about the “power” of processed foods and goes on to explain about how our neural circuits are “hijacked” to get us to come back for more. We now have the science to show how you can make food hyper-palatable to get us to come back again and again for more.

Princeton University conducted a study in which 43 cocaine-dependant rats were allowed to choose to either have cocaine or sugar water over a 15 day period. 40 out of the 43 chose the sugar. In another study, rats on a sugar water diet exhibited tell-tale signs of addiction; bingeing, craving, and withdrawal when the sugar was taken away.

Food addiction is real, a biological fact. Studies confirm that your brain lights up the same for sugar as it does for cocaine or heroin. In fact, sugar is eight times more addictive than cocaine.

If you start your baby early on addictive, highly sugary foods, they are going to become addicted. Looking at baby formulas, especially lactose-free formula, has added sucrose. The food industry knows that the earlier they can introduce these foods of children and infants, the more likely they will have “branded” them for the future.

The programme goes on to show a soft drink advertisement which states “Why we have the youngest customers in the business”.

PART SIX

Every generation of kids born after 1980 has grown up surrounded by these addictive foods and the messages that accompany them. These foodstuffs have become associated with cartoons, games, toys etc. Adverts on tv, online; food companies are always looking for new ways to exploit their future customers.

Willpower and personal responsibility does not work in the face of addiction. If you have an addiction to sugar your brain is being activated everywhere you go, by the sight or smell of food.

In 2002 the World Health Organisation put together a document; TRS916, stating that sugar is a major cause of chronic metabolic disease and obesity. WHO is responsible for setting global health standards; they recommended that no more than 10% or calories should come from sugar.

Sugar organisations lobbied to put immense pressure on the US government to stop the report because it was “too tough on the food industry”. Accordingly the US government put direct pressure on WHO not to publish or they would withhold their $406 million funding for WHO.

The sugar % recommendation was deleted from most WHO reports. Lobbyists for the sugar industry recommended instead that 25% of calories should come from sugar; two and a half times the WHO recommendation.

In an effort to stem the rising obesity levels in children, Michelle Obama fronted an organisation called Let’s Move and showed families how to plan, buy, cook and eat healthy food, focusing on showing people that there were alternatives to processed foods.

The food industry was extremely worried about this so “offered” to help. This help involved moving the focus away from preparing good, home-cooked healthy food to increasing activity and exercise. They certainly pulled a blinder, as you will read.

The food industry explained how they could make processed foods “better” but this meant in reality that, for example, a 3-pack of ‘normal’ cookies = 160 cals became a 3-pack of ‘reduced fat’ cookies = 150 cals (both contained the same amount of sugar).

They capitalised even further by keeping the regular foods but introducing new 'healthier' lines and sizes; a great marketing coup. I don’t think that this is originally what Michelle Obama had in mind, however . It is a beautiful example of the food industry’s distraction and misdirection, further bamboozling and hoodwinking consumers. Very depressing. The food industry insists that the obesity epidemic is solely caused by lack of exercise and refuses to acknowledge that they have any responsibility.

The programme goes on to discuss the ongoing conflict between the “public health” lobby and the “promoting agriculture” lobby. The USDA talks about “limiting sugar intake” but has provided subsidies for producers of corn-based sweeteners (HFCS) since 1995. This illustrates the ludicrous situation whereby the US government is subsidising the production of HFCS yet promoting healthy eating programmes to stop people eating it.

PART SEVEN (nearly there)

We then turn to the USA school dinner programme. It is, quite frankly, horrific.

We are very lucky in the UK that our children have access to healthier choices and that the food industry has not got their claws into school meals (certainly not at primary level, and not I think at secondary level either).

In 1977 (USA) consumer advocates lobbied the government to regulate advertisements for sugar-laden products in an attempt to protect children’s health. They failed .

In 2004 Congress tried again to regulate advertisements aimed at children. Again, the industry successfully rallied to protect its interests, shouting “nanny state”, “food police”, “freedom of choice”.

D’you remember how hard the tobacco industry fought, over many decades, to protect their right to sell us their poisonous cigarettes? Well, the food industry is fighting just as hard, just as dirty, to protect themselves at our and our children’s expense.

Near the end the question is asked “Why don’t diets work? Surely, if say, for 60 or 90 days I can deprive myself of certain foods, lose the weight. But, then I go back into the environment and by brain gets cued and hijacked, so of course I’m going to gain the weight back.”

He goes on to say “Unless we dramatically change our environment and take away all these cues we can never protect our kids.”

PART EIGHT (the end!)

At the end you’re asked to take part in the Fed Up Challenge:-

Get off sugar for ten days.
Avoid processed foods.
Steer clear of ingredients you don’t recognise.
Be aware that added sugar has many hiding places.

Check out www.fedupmovie.com for more information.

I foresee that one day, we will look back and marvel at how long it took for the penny to drop and for sugar to be finally unmasked as a dangerous substance. I hope I don’t have to wait too soon though.

In the meantime what can I do to change the effects of my decades of sugar addiction?

Knowledge is a powerful thing but it’s not going to be enough.

I now know for sure that sugar is poisoning me. All I can do is say “no”, no more. Opt out of sugar 100%. Totally. Why? Because a little sugar will compel me to eat more.

AS you can see, this documentary has had a profound effect on me, and I just wanted to share it.

I know there’s a thread going on that someone’s started who wants to stop eating sugar. I’ll have a search for it I think and ask if I can join in.

I saw the film on netflix and was horrified. I low carb so dont do sugar, even fruit and i feel amazing. All my little niggly health issues have gone and i have lost 2 st in a year.

I am removing sugar from my kids diet - although they still have plenty of carbs i dont buy processed stuff.

Hopefully my kids wont have to re educate themselves as fat adults like i did.

Now if i could just get GPs and PIL to realise that sugar is not an essential food group for children!!

I know sugar is bad. Haven't seen that documentary but there was similar on bbc 2 or channel 4 about 12 months ago.

The trouble is actually giving up sugar. I think it was easier to give up cigarettes! And just as you steel yourself to give up the temptation is suddenly everywhere. It's impossible to walk down a street without seeing an advert for sugar.

my kids diet is fairly healthy but I do worry that they get so much more sugar than we ever did. And gp seem to think this is an essential treat

This is so interesting...presumably some people are more likely to become addicted to sugar than others? What was the conclusion of the film, are there any indications that awareness is growing?

Still can't find this on Netflix ! Really want to watch it

blessedenough, I am so encouraged to read your experience of giving up sugar, particularly having better health, and the bonus of losing a couple of stone too.

Nellagain, your comments had me nodding. Temptation is everywhere and every day is a battle not to indulge. I believe that more and more evidence is continuing to be uncovered about the dangers of adding sugar to foods. It won't be in my lifetime, or maybe even my childrens' (grown up now), but hopefully their children will look forward to a sugarless future. (not totally but massively reduced iyswim).

MairzyDoats Yes, awareness is growing (but slowly). Evidence is being uncovered, studies are taking place, bit by bit the food companies are going to have more difficulty in muddying the waters and protecting "their" interests. Like with the tobacco industry, they will fight hard and long to continue to exploit us. We have to play the long game.

a2011x I am so sorry you can't find Fed Up on Netflix. I watch in the UK but it is an American documentary. It is the first thing I've watched on Netflix. I just found it by browsing the documentaries section. I have had a look on youtube but it looks like it is restricted there.

There's a facebook page connected to the documentary...

www.facebook.com/FedUpMovie?fref=ts

It's on YouTube, just watching it now

Hmmm, that's not the documentary I was commenting on Katharine.

fedupmovie.com/#/page/home

Here's a link to the web page. You can see a trailer here.

Ah right, cheers. I found the one I linked to incredibly dull so turned it off after 20 minutes!

I'm in two minds about all this addicted to sugar stuff. The doc was an absolute shocker, particularly with regard to the huge, bullying power the junk food lobby has in the USA. The idea of having Pizza Hut, McDonalds etc operating out of school canteens is hideous and yet that is reality when you have a country which doesn't believe in 'big government ' and which thinks that regulation of industry is the nanny state/ socialism etc.

However it plays to the American audience by saying no, it's not your fault, and most damagingly by saying that eat less move more is a fallacy. Eat less move more is absolutely not a fallacy. I totally understand that the food environment in the US makes it hard to make healthy choices. Culturally, they eat huge portions of fatty and sugary food.

But nobody is making them buy or eat it. In a country where the consumer is king, if enough of them are willing to spend cash on healthier food then it will be made possible by the free market. In most middle class areas Whole Foods, Trader Joes etc cater to the fresh and healthy type of shopper albeit at a price.

The parents despairing at their kids obesity need to ask themselves some tough questions. Sugar exists all over the world. Sweets came off the ration after the war in the UK and yet we are not a nation of hugely obese people (yet).

My ninety year old granny bought a bag of sugar each week from the grocers, it was considered a staple food for cooking with and adding to tea etc.

Delicious sweets are available everywhere across the developed world. But the USA has a vastly worse problem than say, Italy.

In short, their kids need to eat less and move more.

I can recommend Adam Curtis' The Century of the Self MorrisZapp to help explain how the population of a country like the USA is controlled.