SUPERsize Me!

I know!!!! I was stunned....I would be afraid to eat like that for a month! When I was younger...I enjoyed it, but I wouldn't think of eating it now.

I agree-I thought the docs missed the mark a little...I think THEY were stunned, too! ha!

The fries are mighty tasty though. :=) But, (as if we needed a documentary to point this out) NO GOOD FOR US! haha
Have a good one....

Those fries are heaven aren't they?!?! I could eat my weight of those suckers!


Edited by ChuckyFinster 2005-03-30 12:22 PM

Ditto.

I can't read this thread anymore, I'm having conflicting thoughts of "mmmmmm, french fries" and "Ewwww!  Twice fried danger twigs!" 

LOL

I watched that doco recently - it made me feel physically ill - I think I can safely say I will never eat there ever ever again. It had a HUGE impact on me - I am very into health and nutrition and was shocked at the extent of the obesity crisis in the USA. We here is Oz are going to the same way - bigger portions, eating on the run, making bad choices all the time in regards to food.. Yuk.
What an eye opener!
M

I saw this a few months ago and loved it. Very interesting some of the tidbits. I was amazed at all the sugar loaded into the products and how fattening things like parfait and certain salads can be. It was sad to see how seriously these companies market to kids though. Especially those who fund their lunch programs.

It was sad to see how seriously these companies market to kids though. Especially those who fund their lunch programs."

I know, I thought the same thing. My kids' school programs are pretty lame, as well. I have to remind them each day to make "good food choices." If you want to eat something carby for lunch, then at least eat an apple for desert or something like that. Don't eat more than 2 desserts per week....blah blah blah....they just roll their eyes.

But....that movie pointed out so much that is wrong with the "American diet." I think things are changing though. My kids (8 and 12) want to eat better. They don't want to be overweight, and they're not now, but if they eat all of the juicy drinks, and fast foods that are out there, they would be. (But, I would have to drive them there, so that solves that.) LOL

It was a decent movie, and I agree with it's premise that fast food is bad for you and that it's bad by design (fat tastes good), but I did have a bit of a problem with the maker and some of the things he didn't say, like before going on the McDonnalds diet, the man was a vegan and didn't eat meat. Of course he would gain weight and get sick. Meat in those quantities, introduced into an incredibly low fat vegan diet, would of corse have the effect it had, from McDonnalds or prepared at home in a more healthy way, his body would of course rejected the food, as he knew it would.

The other problem I have is the movie places almost all the blame on the fast food chains, acting like these places are some type of ultimate evil, but in my opinion parents hold most of the blame here. My daughter, to my knowledge, has never had a soda. While she has had fast food, I'd say not more than twice a month. I look at her lunch menu and decide, with her input, what meals she will buy at school and when she will take her lunch. These habbits will and others, I hope, will carry over into adulthood.

If your allowing fast food chains to dictate your nutritional intake, and then blaming the fast food companies because of thier content, your avoiding responsibility.

You are preaching to the choir. And I'm still gonna eat those yummay fries!

"If your allowing fast food chains to dictate your nutritional intake, and then blaming the fast food companies because of thier content, your avoiding responsibility."

Oh--I wholeheartedly agree with you on this point. I think that the ultimate responsibility lies on yourself to make wise eating decisions. You don't have to drive your car into the McDonald's parking lot...it doesn't just drive itself there ya know! Sheesh. LOL

I also don't agree with the vegan diet. I think that eating red meat in moderation is fine, and not "immoral" as his girlfriend conveyed. But, overall, I think it was a good flic.

Also--if we really ate ANYTHING that high in carbs and fat every day, for an entire month, we'd experience the same adverse effects. It's not just McDonald's, per se...it's just a bad diet of overly processed foods that will give you the same ill effects. (and make you feel ill)

I was eating a lot of sugary foods (high on the glycemic index) at one point, for example, and I was getting horrible migraines. Now that I stay away from "white death" (white flour, sugar, and the like) I feel 100% better.

But, the movie was funny too. When that little kid thought a picture of Jesus was George Bush? hahaha!!!! That was hilarious. (a little scary, though, too...LOL)

The so-called study was flawed in so many ways that I consider Supersize Me to be almost pure entertainment. Some of you have listed the flaws already.

The biggest flaw was the it was a case of self-fulfilled prophecy. He wanted to get fat and sick. He could have eaten at almost any restaurant, fastfood or slowfood, and gotten the same result.

The second biggest flaw was that he basically went on bedrest. Well, that study has already been done, in a more controlled, scientific way. The Dallas Bed Rest Study took 5 college-aged students and put them on bed rest for 3 weeks. They were fed a balanced diet. But they still gained weight and got sick. At about age 20, they had the fitness of a 50 year-old. In a follow up study 30 years later, these same 5 men, now aged 50, were put on an exercise program and developed the fitness level of a typical (active) 20 year old!

Other studies have shown the relationship between lack of exercise and depression, independent of diet. So most of the things the guy blamed on McDonalds was a result of his going on basic bedrest.

And did you hear about the overweight guy who saw Supersize Me and decided to eat lunch and dinner at only McDonalds? He made wise food choices by eating mostly McDonalds salads, and he lost 40 pounds.

I'm not trying to defend McDonald's (I never go there) nor the fast-food industry (I avoid all such restaurants, except maybe Panda Express and Subway Sandwich). But I don't think we should blame them--except when they market heavily to children, as someone mentioned above, and even then it gets down to reponsible parenting.

Speaking of which, I'm happy to report that 4 of my 7 children (all of whom are married) are signing up with me to run the St. George Marathon next October. As a family, we lift weights, run, bike, hike (4 of us hiked 13,000-ft King's Peak last summer), and scuba dive. One of my sons is considering doing a triathlon with me this summer. My point (besides bragging) is that we parents need to set the example. If we make proper eating and exercise a fun part of our family culture, our children will likely follow.

Edited by CougarFromUtah 2005-03-31 11:56 AM

The study may not have been scientifically sound, but it has had the impact that the guy made it wanted it to have.

I think everyone under the sun already knows that eating MacDonalds in large quantities is bad for you especially combined with no exercise. However all the extra bits in the film are what makes it so informative and potentially life changing for people.

I steer well clear of fast food places and have done for years but the way the film shows its targetted to the young children market really made me think. it was pretty shocking and Seeing the amount of sugar in those ridiculously large cokes was really thought provoking. I gave up coke last year when after a long period of headaches and migraines. I changed my diet and the ifference is amazing. but giving up coke was realyl really difficult.

Yeah, but then why do so many people do that? Those are the folks this guy is trying to reach.

Whizzer, we need a McDougles update. I believe it was you that had the avatar holding the cheeseburger and coke. Set these guys straight.

Awesome documentary.....
DO NOT MISS the bonus features on the DVD.... It has an interview with the writer of the book "Fast Food Nation" plus a very disturbing experiment with McDonalds french fries called (I think) the smoking fry. I guarantee you will think twice before eating a french fry again....

Ignorance is bliss and fries are yummay!

I loved the feature "The Smoking Fry." It is certainly not scientific (less scientific than a 5th grade science project), but it is DISGUSTING! I have never liked McDonald's fries and now my husband won't even eat there. Even after seeing the movie I still enjoy the occasional egg mcmuffin after a long workout.

I actually rented it at a DVD kiosk outside a McDonald's..of course while watching it I went from ..gross..to... boy I really could go for one of the quarter pounders with cheese...Also..I believe the movie did show that the subject of the film was on his way out..like the dodo bird...Who can't eat a supersized meal...this guy tried and folded within twenty minutes...Obviously, his internal systems weren't as developed as the average americans for handling large quantities of fat and calories...lol.

Was it in the movie or did i read somewhere that they don't do supersize meals anymore?

I would be the same as the guy in the movie no way could I get through a supersize meal. Esp the Coke. I can't even imagine drinking that much coke in one sitting. eewww.