Fed Up Movie Reflection

Fed Up Movie Reflection Obesity has become an epidemic, not only in the United States but worldwide. More people are dying from obesity now than starvation. Nationally, we have an “eat less, exercise more” mentality towards obesity and weight loss. The documentary Fed Up deals with this issue, as well as the childhood obesity crisis, and increased sugar intake by Americans today. As of 2010, two out of every three Americans were overweight or obese. The shocking truth of this is that exercise alone will not fix this problem. Sugar consumption in the United States is at an alltime high. The American Heart Association’s recommended daily allowance for sugar is six to nine teaspoons per day, but in actuality, the average American consumes forty-one teaspoons per day. Studies show that sugar, not fats, is the cause of obesity. Sugar is added to eighty percent of all food in the United States. More children, some younger than twelve, are dying from obesity and related complications. The number of cases of type 2 diabetes in adolescents in 1980 was zero. In 2010, the number of cases skyrocketed to 57,638. Former president Bill Clinton stated in the movie “America is insufficiently alert to the damage sugar is doing to our health.” Fed Up discusses the processed foods and soda industries, and their advertising campaigns that are targeted majorly at children and adolescents. Advertisements with popular cartoon characters or toys offered as incentives to buy junk foods increased sixty percent from 2008 to 2010 alone. There are no regulations in the United States in place to prevent advertising to children. Ads prime children to eat more while watching television. Children's brains are bombarded with sugar advertisements. Advertising campaigns now for sugary foods and drinks are similar to tobacco ads thirty years ago. Soda, according to the film, is the cigarette of the twenty-first century. In 2006, eighty percent of all high schools had contracts with Coca-Cola or Pepsi. Soda companies are also hiring teams of doctors to endorse that their products do not cause weight gain. In truth, one soda increases an individual's risk for diabetes by twenty two percent. The film also reveals the government's roles in preventing full disclosure of pertinent health facts and information, to promote processed foods and cheese sales. Specific documents from the World Health Organization documenting the effects of excess sugar consumption have been swept under the rug. The Reagan administration, in 1981, cut 1.4 billion dollars (about $4 per person in the US) out of the child nutrition budget. This forced schools to stop preparing fresh, healthy foods and switch to processed foods to save money. Every generation after 1980 has been highly surrounded by added sugar. Every store carries candies and sugary snack right at the checkout. Even lactose free baby formula has added sucrose. All these actions promote the sugar addiction epidemic. Studies show sugar is eight times more addictive than cocaine. The film brings to light aspects of the weight loss and fitness industries. From 1980 to 2000, fitness club memberships doubled, but the shocking fact was obesity also doubled. Ten years later, two out of every three Americans are overweight or obese. Bariatric surgeries have increased five times since 2001. It seems surgeries are more acceptable than advertising reform. Fed Up stated that health insurance companies are buying stock in fast food corporations. But the sad fact is thin does not equal healthy in today's society. The film also discussed "skinny fat kids", children who appear healthy and have a healthy weight, but have higher than normal deposits of "dangerously lethal" belly fat. Statistically today, fifty-one percent of all Americans have some metabolic disease. If the trends hold, in twenty years ninety five percent of all Americans will be overweight or obese. One out of every three Americans will have diabetes by 2050. Seventy five percent of healthcare dollars today go to the management of metabolic diseases. Other countries are beginning to reform advertising controls or adding extra taxes on sugary foods and sodas. Many groups are advocating label reforms, demanding that sugar content in food be clearer, with an accurate daily percentage value. Others want warning labels to put on sodas and snacks like those on cigarette labels. Certainly, some reforms are needed. USDA guidelines are conflicting, telling Americans to eat less sugar and fat, but are promoting the cheese and corn industries. Corn is used to produce high fructose corn syrup, a highly processed sugar with little to no nutritional value. Also, the reduced fat movement that began in the 1980s had processed food companies removing fat from their recipes but adding sugar for taste. Artificial sweeteners have been considered the answer but bring more problems of their own. These sugar-like substances trick the body into thinking it is getting sugar when it is not and causes the pancreas to become overworked by pumping out excessive amounts of insulin. Unfortunately, there is no simple answer to this epidemic. Government agencies will need to need to step in and offer full disclosure on research. Advertising reform is also needed. Parents ultimately need to become more responsible for what their children eat and are exposed to in the home. Healthy habits formed when children are young has been shown to carry though into adulthood, as well as unhealthy habits. Better nutritional education in schools is another way to form healthy eating habits. Fed Up is an eyeopening look at the sugar and food industries, as well as government involvement in advertising and food consumption in the United States.