Book Review: Don't Eat This Book, by Morgan Spurlock

G. P. Putnam's Sons, New York, 2005

Making a documentary out of eating and drinking at McDonald's for a month is brilliant. The result, "Super Size Me", released in 2004, is the third most popular documentary ever.
Why the appeal? Several factors:

The last question holds instant fascination for doctors. When the sequel to the documentary came out, Don't Eat This Book, I instantly brought a copy. I could not wait to read the details of this macabre experiment.

Spurlock, in the prime of his life, vigorously healthy and active, and on an extremely healthy diet, is the perfect guinea pig. During the experiment he acquired the following problems:

The implications of the experiment are enormous.
The highly addictive nature of McDonald's products is clear. This is the secret to the success of the fast food industry.
Many of the problems Spurlock experienced have serious sequelae, including death. He took a major risk. Asked about continuing the experiment, his cardiologist predicted highly accelerated coronary heart disease.

Spurlock did not develop Type 2 diabetes (caused by a high-sugar, low-fiber diet), but his risk was high. He was not a pupil in elementary school, and therefore diagnosable with attention deficiency disorder. He did not get cancer as this takes years (trans- fats, superabundant in McDonald foods, are proven carcinogens). In short, given more time a lot more could have happened to Spurlock.

Immediately after the experiment Spurlock went into detoxification. It took two months to clear up most of his problems. That he developed disease on a poor diet, and that he reversed them by returning to healthy eating, says something fundamental. Anyone on a poor diet can expect health problems. And anyone with health problems and a poor diet has a way out. This obvious truth is unknown to most doctors.

The book is much more than an experiment. It is an indictment of the fast food industry. In the last 20 years the number of calories from fast foods has quadrupled, from 3% to 12 % of total US consumption. The proportion of refined sugars and trans- and saturated fats are extreme and dangerous (Spurlock ate a pound of sugar and half a pound of fat per day). Obesity is exploding (Spurlock’s calorie intake nearly doubled). Fast foods are a chemical brew - the Strawberry Flavored Burger King Shake has 46 additives. Fast foods won't decompose - in 2004 someone told Spurlock that he collected one McDonald cheeseburger annually since 1991, all lined up on his living room bookshelf. I had to verify this with a Big Mac sitting on my pantry shelf, and it is true. Try this easy experiment!

There are problems with the hamburger. One hamburger comes from hundreds or, according to the CDC, possibly thousands of cattle – no one really knows. This has implications for the spread of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (spongiform encephalopathy).

The waste of cattle slaughterhouses is fed to poultry; the waste of poultry slaughterhouses is fed to cattle. The practice of purchasing dogs and cats, put down at animal shelters, to grind up for cattle and poultry feed is widespread. Slaughterhouses are unhygienic, and food poisoning is common.

The NewLeaf potato was brought by McDonalds until 2000, and by Pringles, Hardees and Frito Lays. This potato was genetically engineered by Monsanto to manufacture its own pesticide, and was actually registered with the EPA as a pesticide.

Fast foods operate in 23,000 US public schools, often exclusively. The pupils are captive consumers that provide the next generation of fast food addicts.

Many hospitals - 6 of the top 16 US hospitals - have fast food franchises. This is an absolute contradiction of health priorities.

Though Don't Eat This Book is primarily an indictment of the fast food industry, Spurlock sees it as part of a bigger problem. Fast food is simply a type of processed food. 90% of money spent on food goes to processed foods. Processed foods are characterized by excess of sugar, additives, and saturated and toxic fats, and deficiency of minerals, vitamins and fiber. The shelf life is greatly lengthened. This is great for the middleman and the supermarket, but tough on the digestive tract and health.

This diet suits the hurried lifestyle of the American. Divorce, one-parent families, long work hours, and the rise of the professional woman, all contribute to the loss of quality home cooking. Processed foods need little or no preparing, hence the proliferation of fast food, convenience stores and the frozen dinner.

The American public has chosen a dangerous and highly deficient diet. The diseases Spurlock had on his fast food diet – hypertension, high cholesterol, overweight, stunted mental facilities (ADD) and impotence are widespread. This is not a coincidence.

Spurlock discusses diet change. For example, a growing number of schools, including inner city public high schools in Los Angeles and New York, switched to healthy foods, with astounding improvements in behavior and academic performance. Education is another approach; schools might teach courses on nutrition and easy, tasty cooking. Fast foods could be taxed, like cigarettes, and this income used to promote healthy eating. The trend of healthy eating is growing. Organic food is an explosive industry. Farmers markets are popping up everywhere. Interest is widespread, with numerous articles and books on food.

Don’t Eat This Book has great stories and hilarious anecdotes. Spurlock’s style is folksy and easy-to-read. He writes clearly about the fast food industry and puts it in its broader context. This an entertaining read of great value.