For 40 years, a silent epidemic has slowly sickened millions. Obesity is a major global health problem; it is estimated that by 2030, half the world’s population will be obese or overweight.
The film Globesity delves into this health disaster, examining the causes and devastating effects of this man-made tragedy. It examines why almost all countries have failed to stop it, and questions whether our long-held beliefs about obesity are correct.
It also shows how obesity, or being overweight, is a societal problem, and how global food companies are complicit in the epidemic.
The global obesity epidemic has led to a rapid rise in so-called “lifestyle diseases” such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Today, they are the leading cause of death in many countries. There are also record numbers of children, more than 250 million and counting worldwide, living with diseases that traditionally only affect adults.
Being overweight puts enormous stress on our bodies, reducing quality of life and life expectancy. So what caused this outbreak, and why hasn’t a single country managed to fix it?
When someone is obese or overweight, the standard mindset is to blame and shame their food choices, “lazy” exercise, or “lack of self-control.” But it’s been scientifically proven that simply hitting the gym won’t help you lose weight. Burning the same number of calories as we take in is unrealistic since it takes an hour of strenuous walking to burn a hamburger and more than two hours to burn a slice of pizza.
Interestingly, nearly all of the research that equated physical inactivity with a major cause of obesity was led or funded by food giants. The problem goes deeper, especially with what we eat.
Public health policy changed in the 1970s, when the powerful sugar lobby convinced lawmakers that reducing fat intake — and increasing starch and grain intake — was the solution to staying healthy. The food industry is starting to roll out thousands of “low-fat” ultra-processed foods that are higher in sugar.
However, a diet high in starches and sweet processed foods keeps insulin levels high, causing fat cells to retain calories, depriving the rest of the body of calories. It then leads to hunger and the need to eat more. Unfortunately, corporate greed is keeping these unhealthy foods on supermarket shelves. They are more profitable to sell than high fiber, healthy and wholesome unprocessed foods.
It will take a lot of work and political will to stop big food corporations from continuing to control what we should eat. They keep flooding the market with unhealthy food options, crowding out healthy and natural options from competing for a place on your plate. But it must be done as soon as possible before it is too late.
Directed by: Rick Young
