Documentary has shocking McStatistics
By REED DUNN
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When I looked at the timer on my DVD player, it was roughly 17 minutes into the movie.
That's when I got off the couch and started doing crunches in my living room. After about 250 crunches, I moved on to a routine of aerobic walking in place. That lasted for a good 45 minutes.
What Morgan Spurlock had to say was disgusting me. I was so grossed out I felt the need to get up and immediately begin exercising.
Six months or so ago, I stopped eating red meat to force myself into a better diet. Lately, I've been learning to make a lot more vegetarian dishes, too.
Still, the facts being shared in the documentary Super Size Me were enough to make me think I was a walking time bomb about to have a heart attack. My exercise routine needed to be more frequent, and that increased frequency needed to start right then and there.
If you haven't heard about Super Size Me, which was released Sept. 28 on DVD, here's the basic premise: Spurlock goes on a monthlong McDonald's binge. He eats "three squares a day" at the fast food chain and tracks progress through regular visits to a few doctors. The results are astonishing.
It's never been a secret the food at McDonald's -- or anywhere that offers service at a drive-up window -- is not the best dietary option.
I don't eat meals at McDonald's that often -- maybe once a month, at the very most. Fast food in general is not something I seek on a regular basis. My frequency definitely will drop after hearing some of these facts from the film:
Each day, 1 in 4 Americans visit a fast-food establishment.
McDonald's alone feeds more than 46 million people a day. That number is larger than the entire population of Spain.
French fries are the most eaten vegetable in America.
Only seven items on the McDonald's menu contain no sugar.
Yikes! And it only gets worse. Spurlock also talks about how one of the "healthy" salads from fast-food chains has more fat than a Big Mac. I think I'd heard that, but it never really stuck with me.
In the film, nutritionists surveyed recommend not eating fast food more than once a month. While my McDonald's habit probably fits those lines, I'm not sure I can say the same for Wendy's, Taco Bell or the others. I'd say I'm more likely on a once-a-week plan. Not good. Not good at all, they say.
So, it has to stop. I can't use the excuse that I don't have time. And you shouldn't, either. See Super Size Me now. I promise it's worth it.
Unfortunately for me, I found myself back on the couch by the end of the movie. When it was almost over, I caught myself sitting there with a Diet Coke in one hand and a Kit Kat candy bar in the other.
Yeah, that was stupid.
Originally published Thursday, October 7, 2004