Forks Over Knives

This documentary could save your life indeed! Or at least it totally changed mine! More specifically, it changed how I eat.

This is probably the most comprehensive film on health and diet that I've seen so far. It advocates for what is called a whole food, plant based diet and claims that this diet can prevent and actually reverse chronic diseases such as hypertension, heart disease, diabetes, etc.

The evidence presented was so compelling that I've decided to cut the consumption of meat and most dairy out of my life. My fridge now has no meat product in it whatsoever.

Extreme, you say? I concur with Dr. Esselstyn, a cardiac surgeon at the Cleveland Clinic, when he says, "Now, with the Western diet, this guarantees there's going to be, what, a half a million people in this country [U.S.] this year who will have the front half of their body divided, their heart exposed, then veins will be taken from their leg and sewn on their heart. Some people would call that extreme."

Watch this documentary and take control of your health!

Here's a trailer:

Forks Over Knives can be viewed via Netflix streaming, if you are subscribed.

Here is a list of related documentaries that I've watched but will not be reviewing, because I thought Forks Over Knives has the most impact and is sufficient in and of itself. This is for those of you who want to learn more:

1. Food, Inc. (2008) - A must watch on where our food comes from, both meat and produce. Available via Netflix streaming. Here's the trailer.
2. Food Matters (2008) - An exploration into the food that we eat and the connection between our health and the pharmaceutical company. Available via Netflix DVD. Here's the trailer.
3. Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead (2010) - A man's journey to good health by doing the juice fast for 60 days. I actually find this one very entertaining, maybe because of Joe's accent. Available via Netflix streaming. Here's the trailer.
4. Hungry For Change (2012) - An interesting look at food addiction and the variety of weight loss programs out there. Available via Netflix streaming. Here's the trailer.
5. GMO OMG (2013) - A father's quest to figuring out GMO and its implication on human health and the environment. Available for purchase via Amazon and iTunes. Here's the trailer.

As I started to change my diet, I found this book helpful in guiding me through the process as well as educating me on nutrition in simple terms: The Complete Idiot's Guide to Plant-Based Nutrition.

Disclaimer: I am not being sponsored by anyone. I am now starting to realize I mention Netflix a lot, but that is only because we are subscribed to them (we choose not to install/watch cable TV).

Another Disclaimer: Forks Over Knives contains graphic footage of bypass surgeries. If you have problems with seeing blood, I suggest closing your eyes and listening to the narration at such points in the documentary.

Having Informed Opinions

We all have opinions. It is what makes each one of us unique and propels us toward the choices that we make.

For example, I believe dogs are way better than cats, therefore, I probably will never have a cat as a pet.

I mean, look at that face!

For the most part, opinions are based on our preferences and beliefs, which are sometimes backed up with facts and research. These are informed opinions. When facts and research cannot be provided (i.e. in the case of debating what is "right" from "wrong"), to have an informed opinion would mean to have a knowledge of the extended discourse surrounding the issue.

But too many people are spewing uninformed opinions nowadays. What is worse is when people rely on uninformed opinions to govern their actions. Unfortunately, I suspect that this is because of the bandwagon effect. What you are ultimately saying when you fall in the bandwagon is, "Others say it is bad, so it must be bad. I won't bother looking into why because everyone is saying it." And I partly blame our high speed culture with microwave-ready mentality where knowledge needs to be served fast and easy, disregarding the quality of the meal.

Speaking of food, this segues nicely into a funny video that I found via Facebook where Jimmy Kimmel got his crew to interview people at the local farmer's market who are against GMOs on what is a GMO:

While this video is extremely entertaining, it also prompted me to write this post. They just make people who are against GMOs look bad, man! And I'm against GMOs!

But more than that, it bothers me when people state an opinion or choose to live a certain lifestyle and could not, for the life of them, justify it. They're living in ignorance! And whoever thinks ignorance is a desirable trait is deluding himself. That, or he's one of them.


A note on the issue of GMOs, for those interested:

Farmageddon

You will feel outraged after watching this documentary.

We've all seen Food Inc. (and if you haven't, go watch it now!) about where our food comes from and how it is processed. It probably made you a frequent shopper at the local farmer's market, or at the very least made you look at that cheeseburger you're holding a little differently, Monsanto became a name you despise, and the FDA and USDA are not really your friends anymore. As you shun the corporate food industry, you go in search of small family farms for sustenance. Alas, they are expensive and hard to find.

Farmageddon will tell you why.

The atrocities inflicted on family farms across the U.S. will leave you appalled and confused. Why was a peaceful family full of kids restrained at gunpoint? Was the raid really necessary? Whose interest is at the heart of the FDA and USDA after all?

And most importantly, as posed by Joel Salatin, the owner of Polyface Farms who also appeared in Food Inc., "What is it about freedom that is so horrendous to you [FDA and USDA] that you are willing to take my property, take my life, take my customers, take my animals, take my land, that you're willing to do this in order for me to not have a freedom to even sell a pork chop to my neighbor?"

For more information, visit: http://farmageddonmovie.com/.

If you are subscribed to Netflix, this documentary can be streamed from there.

Watch and ask yourself: how much freedom do you really have in choosing health?