Fed up with "Big Sugar"

The film focuses on the causes of obesity in the US, presenting evidence showing that the large quantities of sugar in processed foods are an overlooked root cause of the problem, pointing to the monied lobbying power of "Big Sugar" in blocking attempts to enact effective policies to address the issue.

Already today, more than one in three US Americans is obese, and in the coming years, the number will continue to grow. Only when at least 42 percent of US citizens are extremely overweight, the highlight of the obesity epidemic is achieved, as researchers at Harvard University in Cambridge (US state of Massachusetts) have calculated. Until 2050, the number of obese people in the US may increase accordingly, the researchers write in the journal "PLoS Computational Biology".

Fed Up shows how food companies intentionally formulate their products to reward the same neural pathways in our brains that are stimulated by drugs like cocaine. "One of the most disturbing things I learned in the making of this movie was that the industry and the government have known for decades that we were eating too much sugar. They predicted 30 years ago the obesity epidemic we’re in right now. Nothing’s been done about it. And that was before the explosion of the snack food industry, the explosion of sugary beverages, energy drinks, granola bars. It’s crazy," says director Laurie David in an interview with civileats.com.

Manohla Dargis succinctly summarizes the film in her New York Times review: "Recent research ... indicates that calories in fruit are not the same as those in soda, a conclusion that is part of the big picture in “Fed Up,” a very good advocacy documentary ... A whirlwind of talking heads, found footage, scary statistics and cartoonish graphics, the movie is a fast, coolly incensed investigation into why people are getting fatter. It also includes some touching video self-portraits by some young people who belong to the almost 17 percent of children and adolescents, 2 to 19, who are considered obese."

The directors have gained prominent support. So, you can even watch celebrities as Bill Clinton or Oprah Winfrey talk about their own "sugar stories".

At the end of the movie, the filmmakers throw outthe Fed Up Challenge - a US campaign to break loose from the sugar industry’s powerful grip - with a particular focus on kids and schools.

Individuals, parents and communities are asked to join in going sugar free for 10 days. So, could you go 10 days without refined sugars? 

Photo: press kit fed up

Read and watch moreWatch as executive producers Katie Couric and Laurie David talk about the challenge, telling us to pull together and encourage.

NYT: The Extraordinary Science of Addictive Junk Food