The Supersizing of IC patients!

[icnmgrjill]

If you haven't rented the video "Supersize Me" yet.... you must do it! It's up for an academy award this year, is vastly entertaining and also quite shocking. My teenage nephew saw it in school and announced that he would never eat fast food again... not only due to the danger of the food but also the corporate shenanigans that are so overtly trying to create new customers. I figured... if it made my 16 year old... "junk food" skate boarding nephew stop and think... maybe we should watch it to. It was amazing!!!! The entire family should watch it.

"Supersize Me" follows the journey of producer/actor/director Morgan Spurlock as he eats McDonald's food for thirty days and travels the country and explores how invasive and devastating fast food has become in our lives... particularly children.

I guess the first question is... why would any sane man do this? We all know that eating even one fast food meal is usually enough calories for the entire day. But, his motivations were sincere. He was intrigued by the lawsuits of two girls who sued McDonalds claiming that it contributed to their obesity. A judge threw out their cases because they were unable to submit any evidence that eating "fast food" every day was harmful. He was curious. He was 6'2", 185... very physically fit and passed several doctors reviews. He wanted to see what it would do to him.

Ironically, his girlfriend is a vegan chef and watches, behind the scenes, as he slowly and steadily deteriorates. At Day 2, he experiences the "McGas" "McHeadache" and "McNausea". At week one, his blood levels for cholesterol increase. His liver function tests start showing irregularities. At week two, he struggles with horrible headaches. His girlfriend, in a very funny way, explains that he has begun declining in the bedroom. The doctors supervising him start to become concerned. His liver slowly and steadily declines... suggesting liver failure in the future.

At week three, he shows signs of addiction. Yes, fast food does create and foster addiction and tolerance to sugars, fats and who knows what else they are putting the food. Remember the early claims of the tobacco industry who claimed that their products weren't addictive... only to reveal years later that they were. Fast food is almost identical. At this point, he starts the day with a blazing headache that, as soon as he eats the sugars and fats, wanes. He begins to have periods of euphoria associated with eating. The doctors start saying that they are shocked. His liver is that of an alcoholic who has been drinking for years. One doctor says "I had no idea that eating fast food could be equivalent to drinking alcohol excessively." His mom calls and begs him to stop. And, perhaps foolishly, he does finish out the final 30 days.

At the end, he had gained about 30 pounds. He averaged 5,000 calories a day. His liver was fatty. It took 2 months for his blood levels to go back down to normal levels. It took 9 months for him to lose the weight entirely. But I was left stunned at the additional facts that he discovered throughout the country.

For example, most McDonalds now no longer post the nutrition information about their products in public view or, as he showed, the posters are often in obscure and difficult to find locations. One was even behind a sign. Why? Because when customers saw the truth of what they were eating in black and white, they didn't buy. When he asked various branches for the "nutrition" brochures, they were barely to be found... often in the basement... or just not on the premises. It appears that McDonalds does NOT want you to know the truth about what you are eating.

Sugar consumption! My goodness. They calculated that he had eaten more than a pound of sugar a day, if I remember correctly. Only 7 items on the McDonalds menu don't have sugar and, guess what, hamburgers aren't one of them. McDonalds puts copious amounts of sugar in nearly everything... which might explain the addiction that he experienced.

Also, we all remember hearing about how they were becoming "healthy" by offering salads, etc. It turns out that eating one salad at McDonalds has MORE calories than eating a big Mac. The yogurt parfaits that they offer as a healthier alternative to their soft ice cream are even MORE high caloric than the ice cream alternative. Throw in the massive proportions of getting "supersized" serving for just 10cents more, it's no wonder that people around the world are struggling so desperately with weight.

But, what was even more of a concern was the comparisons of the fast food industry to the tobacco industry. I hadn't really thought of that. We condemned the tobacco industry for marketing their harmful products to children. Don't most McDonald's have playgrounds? Don't kids love "happy" meals. What about the toys. Honestly, who is Ronald McDonald designed to appeal to?? Not adults folks! It's kids. They, like any corporation, want a customer who will spend a lifetime with them. How better than to get them started at a young age.

I didn't really understand how schools had been targeted by fast food agencies as well. Morgan spent several days touring school cafeterias... asking staff about their thoughts about school food. Most food, for example, come processed and already cooked. One cook said that she actually only cooks meals six days a month.

The question he explored though... if children were given the chance to eat fast food versus regular food... what would they eat. Most just ate the french fries and sodas. So much for a balanced diet.

Interestingly, he found an "alternative" school for troubled kids who had a great track record for helping kids get better. What'd they do??? They eliminated all junk food from their diets. These "troubled" kids ate salads, veggies and healthy foods at lunch and were doing very well... while the kids at the regular school across town had more energy problems, more obesity and more "trouble". Hmm.. just imagine... could a healthy diet turn around those kids who are bouncing off the wall buzzed from junk foo. Could a healthy diet help kids labelled ADD who aren't able to "focus" on their lessons? This school proved that it was the CORE success!

One last thing. If you watch the "extras" on the DVD.. there is one that will shock you. He put samples of McDonalds foods in sealed glass bell jars in his office to see how they broke down. So, he had a shake, fries, that gross fish sandwich, a chicken sandwich, regular hamburger.. etc. etc. The creepiest part of all was that the French Fries never developed mold. At six weeks, they still looked normal and edible. What that made me wonder is... what the heck is in those potatoes that makes them unable to be broken down. Gross!

If I still haven't convinced you to stop eating fast food... take a look at these true diet facts.

- You would have to walk for seven hours straight to burn off a Super Sized Coke, fry and Big Mac

- In the U.S., we eat more than 1,000,000 animals an hour

- 60 % of all Americans are either overweight or obese

- One in every three children born in the year 2000 will develop diabetes in their lifetime

- Left unabated, obesity will surpass smoking as the leading cause of preventable death in America

- Each day, 1 in 4 Americans visits a fast food restaurant

- In 1972, we spent 3 billion a year on fast food - today we spend more than 110 billion

- McDonald's feeds more than 46 million people a day - more than the entire population of Spain

- French fries are the most eaten vegetable in America

Just think about it.. would you??

That's the news from the ICN offices, where the sun is shining brightly (finally!) , the sky is a soft blue and the laughter of children can be heard from the school just next door.

[poetgirl]

I haven't seen this movie yet, but have heard a lot about it. Thanks for taking the time to provide an in-depth and enlightening post. I know that I feel better when I stick to a low-fat diet that I've prepared myself (in most cases.) But when you're busy and on the run, it's hard to not give in to McDonald's and other quick and easy options. Of course in the long run, we're sacrificing our health and well-being!

This was a good reminder; I should rent the movie. Then I know for sure I'd give it all up!

[IC SARAH-CPP]

Uuummm, yeah I saw the movie and was properly horrified!! I thought I was going to be a nutrition major in college. I took about 18 nutrition classes throughout the years I was in high school and college and I was so upset to learn that I wasn't eating right, like I thought. Even the FDA coped out and didn't even include info about whole grains because it was considered to "hard" for people to follow. Hmm, I guess it is too hard to grad whole wheat bread instead of white bread. A
Perhaps the most upsetting to me was the way people feed children. As many of you know, I just went to Hawaii to visit my hubby's family. Well his nephew lives there and seriously obese ( he weighs 114 pounds, he's 7) Well I tried to talk to his mother about his diet habits and she insisted he ate healthy. Well after two days of watching him, I couldn't believe anyone would think that was healthy. His regular snack was easy cheese with ritz!! Grr, it made me so mad.
Anyway, thank you Jill, for telling us about the movie. I wish more people would watch that and pay attention to this SERIOUS epidemic in this country. Oh yeah, when my husband and i were in Europe, I was so shocked to see that there were so many less overweight people there, than there is here. It was weird.
Sarah

[Dixiefireball]

Oh my stars I would had never thought of all this happening this is shocking I will try to rent the movie when we go to the movie store this weekend. I want my kids to see this.
I'm totally shocked thanks for posting this jill.
Rhonda

[tjackson]

I saw the movie months ago and have not eaten McDonald's since. I must admit that I used to love Micky-D's tho....I would eat lunch there about once a week, and as the movie suggested, I would crave their food. I never worried about the calories or fat, because I've always had a high metabolism and only weigh 118 lbs (I'm 5'6"). I actually try to gain weight. Regardless, I was blown away by the movie.

One other very gross fact: If I am remembering correctly, it was an employee of the FDA whom related this - the way McDonald's processes their beef is in such mass production that each hamburger patty could have the meat of up to 1,000 cows. No kidding. Ick.

I have a friend who is a chicken farmer. He "grows" chickens for Tyson. They deliver the chicks to his barns when they are only hours old, along with the food they are to eat. It should take many months for the chicks to grow to the size where they would be slaughtered, and Tyson, along with many other chicken distributors, has gotten it down to six weeks. Six weeks! Because they put so many growth hormones in the chicken feed. Yummy.

See the movie everyone,
It not only turns you off of McDonald's, but all fast food,
Tish

[kadi]

Yep,reminds me of Fast Food Nation, a book a few years ago that covered a lot of the same information. I haven't eaten fast food in years because of that book. SuperSize Me though is even more shocking - the visual element makes it all even clearer. And hopefully will reach a larger audience (no pun intended...).

I am a high school teacher & I am constantly horrified at what my students consider lunch, partly because of the total lack of nutrition, but partly because I work in a lower middle class to low income area and the amount of cash these kids/parents shell out for this junk is especially appalling. And yes, I often wonder how many of the afternoon behavior problems are due to the overloads of caffeine, sugar, artificial colors & fat they consume at lunch & crash from an hour or two later...

Great post, Jill!

[desolationangel]

I haven't eaten McDonald's or any fast food in about a year and a half. I don't think ICers should even think about eating it- it's so full of preservatives it's ridiculous.

[ShelbySW]

I'm glad I'm a vegetarian! Did you know that even their french fries have beef fat in them? Then they're deep fried in vegetable oil. yum yum!!

[ICLori]

This was a great movie - very interesting and informative to watch!

Blessings, Lori

[Queensweater]

French fries are a vegetable? :hmm:
I used to work at a McDonald's, and believe me, you'd see the same people in there all the time. But I have to say, I'm more worried about what the kitchen staff does to the food than I would ever be about the ingredients. I know people (former cooks at McDs) who would drop patties on the floor and then put them on a burger, or spit on a burger. You name it, it gets done. Some of them got caught and were fired, while others suspected of doing this were never caught. And that's just locally. I wonder what the people at the production plants do while they're preparing the food to be shipped out to the restaurants?

[ICNJess]

I also saw the movie months ago, and was horrified! I'm doing the vegetarian thing (at least trying to!!!!) and I wasn't back then...as soon as I saw that movie, I gave McDonald's up. But it's not just McDonald's, it's any fast food place. Instant gratification--that's what the nation is all about these days. Fast pace life, fast meals, fast everything!! :(

*Fast break to the toilet for us ICer's ;) *

[traceann]

Ok, now I am properly worried about my sweetie! He eats fast food ALL the time for lunch when he's working during the week downstate. When he's up here, he never wants to go out because that's all he eats during the week. I think we just may rent that movie for him to see, since I live in a place where I have to drive 25 minutes to get to a fast food place, lol, probably a good thing!!! And here, I always had thought of it as a treat for me since I NEVER eat the stuff!! LOL! Yikes!

Tracey :)

[trytosmile]

I haven't seen it yet but my niece and nephews have. They LIVE for fast food especially the youngest who just turned 14. Justin said he would never eat the stuff again and for him to say that....it must have been bad

[dyno]

I just checked it out from the library. I can't wait to see it.

[Sarojini]

I haven't seen this movie yet, but, I think I will ask my husband to go rent it this weekend as I will be home trying to rest away an awful UTI.

However, I do know that I have looked at the nutritional info for many fast food places, including McD's, Burger King, and Wendy's (I love their spicy chicken sandwich) and it really is horrifying how many empty calories are in that food. The calorie count is high, but the nutrition is very low... no vitamins, minerals, etc. I try not to eat this stuff too often... I do indulge the occasional craving, but most of our diet at home consists of freshly prepared stuff. Tonight we're having broiled salmon and my husband's now famous brocolli soup (yeah, it sounds weird, but it's based on a soup we had at a very expensive French restaurant here in Memphis once -- my husband the gourmet chef managed to replicate the soup exactly at home and it is really fabulous... and IC-friendly too!!) :)

[ShelbySW]

Jen,

I hope you feel better over the weekend! I've havent had a UTI since my diagnosis so I cant say, "I know how you feel." I have heard that it is awful though! Good luck! Best wishes!

[jeanniebug]

Awww Jen, I hope you feel better soon. :kissing: UTI's suck. I am going to rent this asap. I quit all fast food the minute I was diagnosed with IC. Luckily, I rarely ate it before that. I only ate it as a last resort on road trips etc. This information completely grosses me out. I'm going to send it to everyone I know. Interesting info: in my 20's, I developed chronic flu-like aches and horrific fatigue. At the time, being single and working alot, I was eating alot of Lean Cuisines and frozen pre-packaged foods for lunch and dinner. Quite alot, for about a year. The doctors could not find anything technically wrong with me, so they said I had Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. I was being treated by an infectious disease specialist. She told me to go off of ALL fast foods and pre-packaged foods, and drink tons of water to flush out my system. Within a few months, my flu-like aches and fatigue were gone. I am convinced some alot of these preservatives and additives are the cause of many auto-immune disorders. I'm no doctor..but my experience with chronic fatigue convinced me of this. Can't wait to see the movie..is this available at regular vidoe stores, like Blockbuster and Hollywood Video?

[jeanniebug]

I just wanted to add that I rented this movie and watched it tonight. It was reeeeaaally good. I cannot believe how much that guy's health declined from eating so much fast food. Yikes!

[dyno]

My husband and I watched it last night. Very good movie and definately an eye opener.

[icnmgrjill]

I think what appalls me most was the statistic that Americans eat 1,000,000 animals an hour each day. I'm an animal lover and I don't want to be responsible for killing animals... which is why I'm also back to nearly vegetarian. I do eat eggs and some chicken. But, beef and pork are now off my diet most of the time. I'd rather have stir fried veggies anyway... or a baked sweet potatoe.... well, you know what I mean.

Here I am agonizing over animal abuse in my neck of the woods... and realize that my efforts are paltry compared to a society that lives so much off of the destruction of animals. It really saddens me.

Jill :(

[IC SARAH-CPP]

Yeah Jill, I know what you mean. It upsets me so much, I try not to think about it, then I feel bad that I am NOT thinking about it!! My husband always teases me saying that I don't care what happens to people, as long as no one hurts animals!! Not true about the humans of course!!!
I also try to eat mostly vegatarian. I would say that we usually eat vegetarian 6 nights a week. I mentioned before that I took a lot of nutrition classes in college and I do remember I was so shocked to hear those same kind of statistics. Most people I know, who consider themselves healthy eaters, HAVE to eat meat every meal and really don't know how to eat meals not centered around meat!!
Anyway, thank you for posting this topic and for being such a cool lady!!
Sarah

[Sherry5]

I too am recovering from a nasty UTI and will rent the movie tonight. I cannot say I am surprised though. I come from a large family(11 kids) and many of my siblings, my parents, and many neices and nephews have different types of mental and behavioral problems, (add, bipolar, etc.) I personally believe that these problems start with a genetic tendency( which we all have in my family) and are horribly exacerbated by environment and food. I have tried to convince my family of this, but they don't listen. I would think they could look at my healthy children and their struggling ones and see the difference, but they seem to think it is all up to chance.

Since adolesence (I had an eating disorder) I have been very conscientious about what I eat. When I started having children, I was even more so. I learn all I can and we eat accordingly. We only eat wheat bread, brown rice, etc. When we started selling our house and moving into our new one, over a year ago, I stopped cooking. We became dependant on fast food, and still are. It is even harder for me to shop and cook now that I am in pain a lot of the time. I am afraid I have undermined all of my hard work. My children, who used to think it was normal to eat cucumbers, carrots, and whole wheat crackers as a snack, now want chips and fast food. They are no longer used to the natural tastes I worked so hard to cultivate. How do I get out of this horrible rut that is so harmful for us all? I can tell a difference in our jealth and my children's behavior. I used to be the health nut of my family, and now I don't know how to get back there when I feel so crappy. It is A LOT of work to eat well. Any ides?

by the way, I recently read a book that talked a lot about how meat is processed, how dairy is processed, how prescription drugs are developed, and how produce is..well...produced :) It is very very very disturbing. It made me want to move into the country, grow all of my own food, milk my own cows, and(close your eyes, vegetarians) humanely kill my own animals. I can't really do that, so I will continue to drink my vitamin and mineral supplemental drink(reliv) and try to start cooking again. I know avoiding fast food would be a good start ;)

[Sherry5]

By the way, nutrition in my kids' school scares the heck out of me. I would encourage all of us who have children to participate in trying to change school policy. Actually we all should. Even if you don't have children, I am sure you are all concerned about the future of our country, and our world. (stumbles, stepping off of her soap box ;) )

[ducky]

If you haven't rented the video "Supersize Me" yet.... you must do it! It's up for an academy award this year, is vastly entertaining and also quite shocking. My teenage nephew saw it in school and announced that he would never eat fast food again... not only due to the danger of the food but also the corporate shenanigans that are so overtly trying to create new customers. I figured... if it made my 16 year old... "junk food" skate boarding nephew stop and think... maybe we should watch it to. It was amazing!!!! The entire family should watch it.

"Supersize Me" follows the journey of producer/actor/director Morgan Spurlock as he eats McDonald's food for thirty days and travels the country and explores how invasive and devastating fast food has become in our lives... particularly children.

I guess the first question is... why would any sane man do this? We all know that eating even one fast food meal is usually enough calories for the entire day. But, his motivations were sincere. He was intrigued by the lawsuits of two girls who sued McDonalds claiming that it contributed to their obesity. A judge threw out their cases because they were unable to submit any evidence that eating "fast food" every day was harmful. He was curious. He was 6'2", 185... very physically fit and passed several doctors reviews. He wanted to see what it would do to him.

Ironically, his girlfriend is a vegan chef and watches, behind the scenes, as he slowly and steadily deteriorates. At Day 2, he experiences the "McGas" "McHeadache" and "McNausea". At week one, his blood levels for cholesterol increase. His liver function tests start showing irregularities. At week two, he struggles with horrible headaches. His girlfriend, in a very funny way, explains that he has begun declining in the bedroom. The doctors supervising him start to become concerned. His liver slowly and steadily declines... suggesting liver failure in the future.

At week three, he shows signs of addiction. Yes, fast food does create and foster addiction and tolerance to sugars, fats and who knows what else they are putting the food. Remember the early claims of the tobacco industry who claimed that their products weren't addictive... only to reveal years later that they were. Fast food is almost identical. At this point, he starts the day with a blazing headache that, as soon as he eats the sugars and fats, wanes. He begins to have periods of euphoria associated with eating. The doctors start saying that they are shocked. His liver is that of an alcoholic who has been drinking for years. One doctor says "I had no idea that eating fast food could be equivalent to drinking alcohol excessively." His mom calls and begs him to stop. And, perhaps foolishly, he does finish out the final 30 days.

At the end, he had gained about 30 pounds. He averaged 5,000 calories a day. His liver was fatty. It took 2 months for his blood levels to go back down to normal levels. It took 9 months for him to lose the weight entirely. But I was left stunned at the additional facts that he discovered throughout the country.

For example, most McDonalds now no longer post the nutrition information about their products in public view or, as he showed, the posters are often in obscure and difficult to find locations. One was even behind a sign. Why? Because when customers saw the truth of what they were eating in black and white, they didn't buy. When he asked various branches for the "nutrition" brochures, they were barely to be found... often in the basement... or just not on the premises. It appears that McDonalds does NOT want you to know the truth about what you are eating.

Sugar consumption! My goodness. They calculated that he had eaten more than a pound of sugar a day, if I remember correctly. Only 7 items on the McDonalds menu don't have sugar and, guess what, hamburgers aren't one of them. McDonalds puts copious amounts of sugar in nearly everything... which might explain the addiction that he experienced.

Also, we all remember hearing about how they were becoming "healthy" by offering salads, etc. It turns out that eating one salad at McDonalds has MORE calories than eating a big Mac. The yogurt parfaits that they offer as a healthier alternative to their soft ice cream are even MORE high caloric than the ice cream alternative. Throw in the massive proportions of getting "supersized" serving for just 10cents more, it's no wonder that people around the world are struggling so desperately with weight.

But, what was even more of a concern was the comparisons of the fast food industry to the tobacco industry. I hadn't really thought of that. We condemned the tobacco industry for marketing their harmful products to children. Don't most McDonald's have playgrounds? Don't kids love "happy" meals. What about the toys. Honestly, who is Ronald McDonald designed to appeal to?? Not adults folks! It's kids. They, like any corporation, want a customer who will spend a lifetime with them. How better than to get them started at a young age.

I didn't really understand how schools had been targeted by fast food agencies as well. Morgan spent several days touring school cafeterias... asking staff about their thoughts about school food. Most food, for example, come processed and already cooked. One cook said that she actually only cooks meals six days a month.

The question he explored though... if children were given the chance to eat fast food versus regular food... what would they eat. Most just ate the french fries and sodas. So much for a balanced diet.

Interestingly, he found an "alternative" school for troubled kids who had a great track record for helping kids get better. What'd they do??? They eliminated all junk food from their diets. These "troubled" kids ate salads, veggies and healthy foods at lunch and were doing very well... while the kids at the regular school across town had more energy problems, more obesity and more "trouble". Hmm.. just imagine... could a healthy diet turn around those kids who are bouncing off the wall buzzed from junk foo. Could a healthy diet help kids labelled ADD who aren't able to "focus" on their lessons? This school proved that it was the CORE success!

One last thing. If you watch the "extras" on the DVD.. there is one that will shock you. He put samples of McDonalds foods in sealed glass bell jars in his office to see how they broke down. So, he had a shake, fries, that gross fish sandwich, a chicken sandwich, regular hamburger.. etc. etc. The creepiest part of all was that the French Fries never developed mold. At six weeks, they still looked normal and edible. What that made me wonder is... what the heck is in those potatoes that makes them unable to be broken down. Gross!

If I still haven't convinced you to stop eating fast food... take a look at these true diet facts.

- You would have to walk for seven hours straight to burn off a Super Sized Coke, fry and Big Mac

- In the U.S., we eat more than 1,000,000 animals an hour

- 60 % of all Americans are either overweight or obese

- One in every three children born in the year 2000 will develop diabetes in their lifetime

- Left unabated, obesity will surpass smoking as the leading cause of preventable death in America

- Each day, 1 in 4 Americans visits a fast food restaurant

- In 1972, we spent 3 billion a year on fast food - today we spend more than 110 billion

- McDonald's feeds more than 46 million people a day - more than the entire population of Spain

- French fries are the most eaten vegetable in America

Just think about it.. would you??

That's the news from the ICN offices, where the sun is shining brightly (finally!) , the sky is a soft blue and the laughter of children can be heard from the school just next door.
Hi Jill!
Sent you emails before. Portland IC support group. I noticed you are in Santa Rosa, CA A beautiful place to live. My grandmother lived in Calistoga for several years. She past away 1 1/2 years ago.(June 2003) My mother, and I drove down at that time. When I was in high school, I use to ride the greyhound bus to my grandmothers home. I would like to live there when I retire. Already retired kinda. On SSD.

[ducky]

Jen,

I hope you feel better over the weekend! I've havent had a UTI since my diagnosis so I cant say, "I know how you feel." I have heard that it is awful though! Good luck! Best wishes!
I have had several UTI and they are extremely painful.
Sorry to hear not well. I finally found the chat board. I was diag with IC in'98. Still not doing well. Wish I could work again! Hope you feel better! Belong to the Portland, OR support group.

[mayray518]

I eat pretty healthy and keep my weight low but I cant give up my three times a year Big Macs.

[berryjona]

One other very gross fact: If I am remembering correctly, it was an employee of the FDA whom related this - the way McDonald's processes their beef is in such mass production that each hamburger patty could have the meat of up to 1,000 cows. No kidding. Ick.

I have a friend who is a chicken farmer. He "grows" chickens for Tyson. They deliver the chicks to his barns when they are only hours old, along with the food they are to eat. It should take many months for the chicks to grow to the size where they would be slaughtered, and Tyson, along with many other chicken distributors, has gotten it down to six weeks. Six weeks! Because they put so many growth hormones in the chicken feed. Yummy.

See the movie everyone,
It not only turns you off of McDonald's, but all fast food,
Tish

i LOVE the points you make in your post. mass meat production is an utterly gross problem in our society. if we could at least eat fresh hamburgers with fresh meat it would be one thing.

also, it really yanks my chain how many hormones and antibiotics they put in meat and dairy. if you look around at all the women who have hormonal problems (myself included), you have to wonder how we all got that way. a lifetime of product consumption laced with hormones has got to do something. and the antibiotics ... look at all the resistance these days. penicillin no longer does anything!

and it was a great movie.

[icnmgrjill]

And... in our last newsletter... we talked about a study which showed that a massive e-coli/uti outbreak in 1999 was correlated to contaminated meat that had been distributed to several states.

I decided, this year, that I was going to finally stand up for my values. I'm not going to eat fast food... and I haven't eaten beef since the first of the year. I have eaten chicken and turkey... and a little bacon on salads. I've been eating a lot of soy... and have to say that I think that it's not particularly good for my health over all. I seem to be getting more bugs on this diet... rather than on a more meat based diet. Oh well!

Jill

[Betsie]

My BIL & his wife after many years of a strict vegetarian diet, had, for health reason and just the bodies natural aging to add in proteins. they always ate legumes and tofu to balnce off the lack of animal proteing, but my BIL was finally in a health situation where he was forced to work red meat back into his diet, allbeit, a small amount in comparison to the majority of Americans. I think there is something to do with it being the only red blood cell building protein in food...not sure, it is something of that nature....He does feel better as he was not getting enough nutrients in his diet.

Going to add this movie to my netflix queue....sounds disgustingly interesting. Hmmmm

[WillyWonka]

I definitely need to watch this movie. I have a real craving for McDonalds every once in a while. It's kind of a double-edged sword for me. I don't gain (much) weight from McD's because as soon as I eat it, my IBS kicks in and all that grease helps it slide right through the system. Then I think about it. That can't be doing my body any good. But darn it, all...they make it taste good. Hopefully this will kick my habit!

Cheers,

Steve