"Fed Up" notes fedupmovie.com

I just watched the new documentary by Laurie David called "fed up".  Here are some notes I made.  It's a great documentary with commentary from some of my favorite food experts like Gary Taubes and Michael Pollan.

Sugar is poison. Sugar is poison.  Sugar is poison.  Sugar drives the pancreas to secrete insulin.  Insulin drives the fat cells to grow.  80% of the food items in a grocery store have added sugar.  Low fat equals high sugar.  All grains and potatoes are digested into sugar in an instant in the digestive tract.  Fruit juice is just as bad as soda.  Americans eat twice the amount of sugar the did 40 years ago. Sugar is 8 times more addictive than cocaine.  The American food industry preys on children from the youngest age causing them to be addicted to sugar laden processedy food.  Simple carbohydrates are the cause of metabolic syndrome.  Junk food is still junk even if it's labelled as less junky.  It is not possible to exercise enough to correct obesity when sugar is too abundant.  The government subsidizes precisely the food that makes us sick.  More than half of all high schools serve branded fast food.  French fries and pizza are counted as vegetables under the school lunch program.  Only eat products that are as close to nature as possible.  Avoid processed foods. Added sugar is in tons of hiding places.  Avoid fast food and kids menus. Replace juice, milk, and soft drinks with water.

Fall is a great time to get the kids outside enjoying the wonders of Arkansas.  Living in NWA we are just a stone's throw from tons of cool outdoor places.  Of course, kids are content to watch their shows, play on their iPads, play more Minecraft, watch more youtube videos (about Minecraft), or kill some more zombies, but that is not what mother nature intended. Our bodies and minds are made to be outside.  We need to walk, to climb, to search, hike, paddle, and gallop.  A night or two of camping can bring family bonds back together like no other activity. There's inevitably something we forgot to bring, a run in with an insect or two, and strange sounds at night. Improvisation and spontaneous reaction to unexpected events is bound to occur.  Getting kids out of their routine is great practice for real life.  It triggers creativity that makes us more well-rounded in our abilities and skills.  Outdoor activities build confidence that kids can tackle unexpected problems.  The unknowable becomes not so scary.  Take a family bike ride, rent kayaks at a local state park, get a couple of fishing poles, pack a hammock, do a trail ride, zipline, read a guidebook with the kids and see what they'd like to do.  These links are some of my recent favorites and places I've been:

arkansasstateparks.com
Buffaloriver.com
www.ziplineeurekasprings.com
http://bearmountainstables.com
http://www.rockclimbing.com/routes/North_America/United_States/Arkansas/
http://www.getoutozarks.com/news/2012/apr/11/get-way-back-kayak/
http://www.recreation.gov/camping/lake-wedington/r/campgroundDetails.do?contractCode=NRSO&parkId=75480
http://www.razorbackgreenway.com
http://www.timernst.com/guidebooks.html