We all eat everyday. At this point, very few in the world can escape this. In fact in the developed world, most of our lives revolve around food. We eat when we are happy. We eat when we are sad. We eat when we are bored. We just eat, and a lot. Yet never in the history of time has food been such a controversial issue.
Today we wonder how natural our food really is. We cannot escape the issues of all the additives that are put in it, and whether they are really safe for us. We are starting to consider more and more how ethically our food came to us, and what the true cost of the food on our table really is. Today we even have to consider whether our food has been genetically modified or not. Can we still even call it food?
With this in mind, in our modern times more and more information is surfacing to teach us about our food. You may think – “it is food, how hard can it be” – but food today is not what food used to be 1000, 100 or even 50 years ago.
Thus people are speaking up and speaking out, for in the end the state of our health, environment and society as a whole is at stake. And these assets are worth more than any money in the world.
To help us get educated on the current food issues, expand our awareness and raise our consciousness, there exist numerous books and videos. You can check out the Evolving Wellness recommends page for more ideas. In this article I will share with you 9 documentaries about food that every single person who eats out there, and at least somewhat cares about their health, our environment and the future state of our world should watch.
1. Food, Inc.
You May Never Look At Dinner The Same Way
This is the first movie that I recommend people to see, when getting to know better the real story behind their food. This documentary was released in 2009 and gives a wonderful breakdown of where our food really comes from.
How much this movie shocks you, depends on how well you have been keeping up with where your food really comes from.
This movie is highly educational and empowering. I would recommend it for families to watch with children as young as in the early teens to empower them as well, as this is part of their future too.
It gives you a look at all the foundations of where your food came from, how it was grown, prepared and what the cost of that food really was. This movie brilliantly covers what each of us should know today as an informed citizen, and respected human being. Your health, your family’s health, your money, our environment and the future economy depends on it.
Food, Inc. can be rented at most major movie rental stores across North America today. Food Inc. can also be viewed for free on Wide Eye Cinema or Documentary Wire here. It can also be purchased from Amazon.com for just under $10 here: Food, Inc..
2. Fresh
New Thinking About What We’re Eating
I recommend seeing this after Food Inc. as both of these movies really complement each other well. They talk about the same issues of where our food really comes from and at what price to our health and our environment.
Fresh was released in 2009. Fresh will move you on many levels, including emotionally, morally, ethically and intellectually. Our present eating habits just don’t make sense any more for many reasons.
Like Food Inc., this movie is a wake up call to each of us to examine what we eat, where our health, environment and farmers are concerned. Unlike Food Inc., this movie is coming at the same topic, but from more of a perspective of a new vision and movement to make a change in our paradigms and habits for our future. It is suitable for most of the whole family from early teens on.
Fresh is currently being shown through group screenings all over North America, with individual DVD copies becoming available for purchase soon.
3. The Future of Food
There’s a revolution happening…
After you see the introductions to what the major issues with our food are today, I recommend seeing The Future of Food next. This documentary continues the theme of educating and empowering us, but now focuses solely on genetically modified food.
This movie was released in 2007 and is remarkable at showing us the detailed side of the genetically modified food industry. You will see it all, from the farm to the corporation to the store and finally your plate.
The Future of Food is suitable for younger audiences, but being a documentary covering a more of a serious topic, may not be fully understood by younger children or hold their attention.
This movie offers an in-depth investigation into the disturbing truth behind the unlabeled, patented, genetically engineered foods that have quietly filled U.S. grocery store shelves for the past decade. In fact it explains the whole concept of genetically modified food in common terms so that everyone understands what they are getting into consuming or promoting such products. You may laugh at times, you may even cry at times, and you will no doubt feel disbelief when you learn about our judicial and political systems when it comes to protecting us – the consumer and citizen.
The Future of Food can be rented at most major movie rental stores across North America today. It can be viewed for free on top documentary or documentary wire here. It can also be purchased from Amazon.com for just under $13 here: The Future of Food.
4. Fast Food Nation
Do You Want Lies With That?
This is the another movie that I recommend people to see, when getting to know the real story behind their food. Fast Food Nation gets more specific and focuses on a particular part of the food industry – the fast food and meat industry.
This movie was released in 2006 and is not quite a documentary, but classified as a drama and stars various well known actors. The characters are fictional, but the story is real – all too real in fact. It happens every day.
Fast Food nation may not be as educational as Food Inc. or the others above, but in many ways it is more graphic at showing us the truth. It is rated R for coarse language and other material that may not be suitable for viewers under 18.
This movie won’t have you excited for more, or necessarily always entertained, but it will show you the unspoken and often unknown dark side of the most popular “North American” meal – the burger and the corporations that make it thrive. In a theatrical way it exposes and really makes us consider what is going on behind the closed doors of the places that bring to us our food.
It will make you morally consider what you are going to choose to support from that moment on where certain food choices are concerned.
Fast Food Nation can be rented at most major movie rental stores across North America today. It can also be purchased from Amazon.com for just under $12 here: Fast Food Nation.
5. Processed People
The Antidote To America’s Toxic Lifestyle
Once you have seen at least some of the above mentioned movies, I recommend seeing Processed People. This is a fantastic documentary that is really well put together and entertaining enough even for young teens. This movie tells it like it is when it comes to our food and our health status today.
This movie was released in 2008 and is a phenomenal resource to have at home and watch as often as you need to hear the message that is offers. Processed People makes us confront the real truth behind what we are eating and how to get back to our natural state of perfect health.
It features various world renowned authors, teachers and doctors today, including the wonderful Dr. Joel Fuhrman. It guides us through the topics by asking us a series of questions we need to consider and ask ourselves. It starts with the question of “Why are we so fat?” and finishes off with the question “What happens if we don’t change?”
It will make you seriously consider your habits and the future of your health and your life.
Processed People is available from the Processed People web site. It is also available from Amazon.com: Processed People – The Documentary. Check out the full review of Processed People here.
6. A Delicate Balance
You never know what you’ve got…till it’s gone.
Finally I save the best for last. A Delicate Balance is an extremely important and powerful movie, but what it presents, many people are not ready to hear or accept. This is why I recommend seeing this movie last. Once you have seen all of the above food documentaries, you should be open enough to accept and embrace this documentary.
This movie was released in 2008 and is just plain and simple mind blowing! It covers the aspect of our food and what we eat from mostly a health point of view and finishes off with the environmental impact. The message is strong and real, and will really make you consider what and where you priorities lie.
A Delicate Balance will be most embraced by people who are serious about their health and ready to make changes and move into a healthier lifestyle for themselves, their families and the planet. I suspect a lot of what the movie presents will be very new and extremely shocking to most of you out there, but that is why I recommend it to open up your mind and heart. It may just save your health, if not your life.
A Delicate Balance is available to be watched on a pay per view option on your computer, at a movie screening or purchased as a DVD from the movie’s official site here. Check out the full review of A Delicate Balance here.
7. Hungry for Change
Your Health Is In Your Hands
This has quickly become one of my top recommendations to people who are serious about taking accountability for their health and making positive changes. It is revolutionary in terms of the information it shares, and very empowering to get each of us to take action.
This movie was released in 2012 and produced by the makers of Food Matters (see above). It is very well put together to be both highly educational and entertaining. It features a woman in her 30’s who leads the typical mainstream life of high stress, low self-esteem and poor dietary habits, as the main character. The film then follows her choices and changes, as numerous leading edge health experts interject their wisdom, guidance and knowledge to us as the viewer.
The film features numerous world renowned authors, teachers and doctors today, like Dr. Christiane Northrup, Dr. Alejandro Junger, David Wolfe, Kris Carr, Mike Adams and many more. It is provocative, awakening and highly valuable for each of us to take in so that we can make better connections between our dietary and lifestyle choices, and the state of our health and happiness.
This film is part of my top recommendations of all time, and I invite you to read my full review of Hungry For Change where I outline more details as to its content and share my insights.
Hungry for Change is available from the film’s web site. It is also available from Amazon.com for $14.99 for a DVD and $3.99 for an instant rental: Hungry for Change on Amazon. It is also available on Netflix for those who have a subscription.
8. Forks Over Knives
A film that can save your life.
This is one of the most instrumental films to watch of our time. For those of you familiar with the work of the China Study, it takes the research from decades of that work and puts it into one, life changing documentary. Director Lee Fulkerson features himself in the film as he begins to explore the links between diet and disease, given his personal health challenges and habits.
The film was released in 2011 and is a very important and empowering resource to have at home and watch as often as you need a reminder and inspiration. Along with top medical experts, it feature real people and their transformational stories of change through adopting dietary changes towards a plant-based diet.
It features various world renowned authors, teachers and doctors today, including the author of the China Study himself, Dr. Colin Campbell, as well as Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn, Dr. Joel Fuhrman, Dr. Pam Popper and many more. The info from the experts is timely and superb, and what makes this film so valuable is how much information it provides to teach people about what it takes to have excellent health, heal disease and prevent future ones.
This is one of my top recommendations where health and nutrition films go, and it is one that I would gladly enjoy watching again any day. To learn more about the content and my insights, you can read my full review of Forks Over Knives.
Forks Over Knives is available from the film’s web site. It is also available from Amazon.com for $14.99 for a DVD and $2.99 for an instant rental: Forks Over Knives on Amazon. If you are based in the US, you can also watch Forks Over Knives for free on Hulu.
9. Vegucated
We’re digging more graves with our fork, than anything else.
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Vegucated is a great documentary for those who are either interested about, or sceptical about the vegan lifestyle. It is a low budget film that follows 3 New Yorkers of different ages and races, who love eating the typical animal products like meat and dairy. Over a period of 6 weeks, they learn about and personally try out the vegan lifestyle. Their challenges and struggles along the way are noted as they discover a whole new world of possibilities, and a reality that is often hidden from the mainstream way of life.
This movie was released in 2010 and is a quick, funny, but to the point resource about why veganism is a valid solution for our health, environment and the future of our planet. Vegucated makes us get honest and face what the fate of animals that are used for food and our common everyday products is really like.
It features some nutrition and health information from the renowned Dr. Joel Fuhrman and Dr. Colin Campbell. It also features short commentaries from other experts like “Mad Cowboy” Howard Lyman. It is however not a film that will provide lots of information on healthy vegan eating, but is geared to doing exactly as its title suggests - educating people about veganism. Today this is highly beneficial whether one becomes a vegan or not, to reduce the ignorance and misinformation that is present in our society about this lifestyle choice.
Vegucated is available from the Vegucated main web site. It is also available from Amazon.com for under $20 for a DVD purchase or $2.99 for an instant rental: Vegucated on Amazon. You can also watch Vegucated for free on Vimeo, albeit with some missing parts.
10. Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead
Reboot Your Life
Chronic diseases are at an all-time high, and many of us just don’t seem to be getting it and connecting the dots between our lifestyle habits and the state of our health. However, an increasing number of people are sick and tired of being “sick and tired” and taking things into their own hands. One such person was Joe Cross, who is the featured character in this film. An Australian born, successful business man, Joe may have looked like he had it all, except for one big thing - his health.
This movie was released in 2010 and it continues to draw in audiences from all over the world who are seeking ways to improve their health and get serious about weight loss. Joe was severely overweight, and had numerous health issues including an autoimmune disorder. He decides to go on a Juice Fast and the film chronicles his journey that takes place over 60 days. What happens at the end is remarkable and nothing short of a miracle as to how Joe transforms his health, and the health of others along the way.
The film features information and health guidance from the renowned Dr. Joel Fuhrman. It also provides information about the concept of juicing and how it can transform people’s health and weight. In the end, Joe invites each person to “reboot their life”, which is what he did to gain back his life.
Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead is available from the film’s web site” for $14.99. It is also available from Amazon.com for $12.99 for a DVD and $2.99 for an instant rental: Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead on Amazon. You can also watch the film for free on YouTube: Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead.
Conclusion
Well, that is the end of our journey. I hope you enjoy the above movies, and I have no doubt that should you consider watching them, they will awaken your sense of awareness to a whole new way of living and being, when it comes to food and your health.
The reason I find that most people don’t watch movies like this, is because they know that the truth is inconvenient and usually means some kind of a change. Too many of us would rather bury our heads in the sand, than make changes. Changes that have huge benefits for us, our families, the environment and our world.
And so today I invite you to step away from any fears and inconveniences, and face the greater truths that are present amongst us today. Liberate yourself. Open your mind. Open your heart and awaken to your higher state of being.
Your health and the health of our environment – Mother Earth and all of her creation - as well as our society depends on it.