In Defense of Food

A food-loving and scientific tribute to the Mediterranean diet and, not least, the liquid gold: olive oil.

A 30-year-old " Average Joe" tries eating a clean, raw, plant-based diet and working out for 60 days, on an experimental journey to test the effect on his physical, mental, and emotional life. He hopes to transform his complacency and fatigue (on the Standard American Diet) to an improved version of himself. Medical benchmarks are measured, as experts and others weigh in with opinions and commentary along the way, in a light-hearted look at the modern struggle for health. This is an open conversation, offering hope to us all.

One in three Americans is pre-diabetic. A huge percentage of them do not know that they are sick. Adult onset diabetes is no longer an illness for the obese and elderly. Millions of Americans who regularly exercise and eat a diet recommended by the USDA are classified as "skinny-fat". The connection between the standard American diet and numerous metabolic disorders is now an unspoken fact in most medical circles

From Food to Freedom tells the story of a live-in immersion program in Greensboro, NC with six participants (and two spouses) diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. The 10-day program includes biometric testing, physician supervision, and daily meals. As we go through the immersion, we hear from participants of their past struggles living with such a dreaded disease, and we hear of their hope for a better life. We watch firsthand as they suddenly change their diet from a standard American diet to a whole food plant-based diet, and we see how this leads to unexpected and astounding results.

A Cambridge geneticist dispels misconceptions about living with obesity and explores why the epidemic continues to expand across the UK and America.

Fat Chance is a grassroots Australian story of physical conquest that will change the way you feed your family forever. This new documentary follows Warren Hepsworth who sets out to ride a pushbike from Perth to Melbourne on a low-carb, high-fat diet. You’ll see Warren’s preparation for the ride as well as highlights and lowlights from the journey, and the diet change. The movie attempts to debunk the notion that athletes have to carb load and that you can’t get your energy from fat. In the process we learn that much of what we’ve been told about a healthy diet is wrong.

After looking at countless "before and after" photos on the web, Sergei Boutenko became curious to see if he, too, could achieve his dream fitness goals by following a no-gimmick exercise and diet protocol. At age 30, Boutenko noticed his metabolism slowing down, his weight increasing, and the temptation to get caught in life’s bad habits (eating out, drinking, and living sedentary lifestyle). Instead of yielding to these pressures, Boutenko hired a film crew and decided to use himself as a guinea pig.

From the UFC Octagon in Las Vegas and the anthropology lab at Dartmouth, to a strongman gym in Berlin and the bushlands of Zimbabwe, the world is introduced to elite athletes, special ops soldiers, visionary scientists, cultural icons, and everyday heroes—each on a mission to create a seismic shift in the way we eat and live.

With nutritionally-depleted foods, chemical additives and our tendency to rely upon pharmaceutical drugs to treat what's wrong with our malnourished bodies, it's no wonder that modern society is getting sicker. Food Matters sets about uncovering the trillion dollar worldwide sickness industry and gives people some scientifically verifiable solutions for curing disease naturally.

The majority of premature deaths can be prevented through simple changes in diet and lifestyle. In How Not to Die, Dr. Michael Greger examines the fifteen top causes of death in America-heart disease, various cancers, diabetes, high blood pressure, and more. He explains how nutrition and lifestyle can sometimes trump prescription pills and other approaches, freeing us to live healthier lives.

As obesity progresses inexorably, Sylvie Gilman and Thierry de Lestrade investigate the causes of this planetary plague and reveal the fight waged in certain countries to stem it.

Morgan Spurlock subjects himself to a diet based only on McDonald's fast food three times a day for thirty days without exercising to try to prove why so many Americans are fat or obese. He submits himself to a complete check-up by three doctors, comparing his weight along the way, resulting in a scary conclusion.