Curtis Cimmino

Professor Laura Kohl

HLTH – 1020

6 April 2018

Supersize Me Nutrition Perspectives

Supersize Me is approximately an hour and a half long film directed by and

staring Morgan Spurlock. The most basic summary I can give of the documentary is

that it follows Spurlock on a 30 day experiment where he eats nothing but

McDonalds meals 3 times a day, for breakfast, lunch, and, dinner. There were several

rules that Spurlock tried to follow for the 30 days of his experiment. First and the

most important, he could only eat McDonalds for thirty days three times a day, this

included drinking soda or bottled water. During those thirty days he must try every

item on the menu once, and any time he is asked to super size a meal he has to do it,

but he can only super size when he is asked, not when he pleases. Another rule he

tried to follow was that he tried to walk the average amount of steps as an average

American which is about 5,000 steps a day.

Before the experiment started Spurlock went to see several doctors to

receive a full rundown of his health and also to give their ideas on how the diet

would effect his health. All the doctors came to the conclusion that Spurlock was 6’

2” and 185 pounds, and in perfect health.

The experiment started in New York City where Spurlock quickly gained 10

pounds in the first week. He describes himself as feeling depressed and tired with
headaches. He even says that eating meals at McDonalds helps relieve these

symptoms. After the full thirty days he gained an additional 14 pounds totaling 24

pounds. There was a weigh-in where Spurlock lost a pound but doctors speculated

that was due to muscle loss replaced with fat. His girlfriend Alex Jamieson said that

during the month long experiment Spurlock lost a noticeable amount of energy and

sex drive and after doctors tests it was determined along with gaining 24 pounds he

may have irreversible heart damage that may lead to a heart attack later in life, even

after the weight is lost. His cholesterol rose from 168 to 225 and his blood pressure

went from 130/105 to 150/90. And the end of the movie it is reveled that it took 5

months to lose the first 20 pounds and another 9 months to lose the last 4 pounds.

Then the movie ends with a question, “Who do you want to see go first, you or

them?”.

2. The reason I chose this documentary is because first I have seen it in the past

and have had discussions about it with my family so I was familiar with it but was

interested in how id see it differently after learning some things about proper

nutrition.

3. Morgan Spurlock started the experiment at 185 lbs with 11% body fat. A

cholesterol of 168 and all other body functions were normal, or “perfect”.

4. Supersize me was released in May of 2004 and I do not think anything has

changed. McDonalds has stopped supersizing meals and they’ve introduced

healthier salad options but after all the added stuff, they have as much calories as

the burgers themselves. There is more of a need for society to change rather than

the businesses.
5. One of the most noticeable things in the movie was the serving sizes and also

the lack of any balance when it came to a well rounded diet. The book recommends

for a 1000 calorie diet you would want 1 cup of fruits and veggies, 2 cups of dairy, 2

ounces of protein, and 3 oz of grains.

6. I learned from watching this experiment that a well balanced diet is essential

to living a well rounded life. A poor diet can lead to poor physical health and a lazy

attitude. I did not fully understand this until watching this movie. I have already

started eating better over the past few months but I have the occasional cheat meal

where ill run to McDonalds across the block and get a burger. But I don’t think I will

be doing that any longer.

 Works Cited

Spurlock, Morgan, director. Supersize Me.

“Super Size Me: Data and Information.”

www.unc.edu/courses/2005fall/engl/012/025/Handouts/SuperSizeMeDATA.pdf.

Wardlaw, Gordon M., et al. Contemporary Nutrition. McGraw-Hill Education, 2015.