Movie Reviews!

Happy Sunday Everyone!

It's only 6:30AM my time but I couldn't sleep in any longer. I find I get that way in the spring/summer months which isn't a bad thing. Yet, when I'm falling asleep at 9pm on the couch you'd think my body would want to sleep longer, apparently not! So, anyways, hope you are having a fabulous weekend! I am pretty excited as the local farmer's market has reopened for the year! I had to work so I wasn't able to make it for the first day but I'm going to soak it up next weekend for sure. Other than working, its been a pretty laid back weekend. No plans, no rushing around, and I don't mind one bit! Today is gym and coffee day with hopefully some sunshine soaking in the mix:) For today's ramblings I wanted to share with you my two cents about a couple of movies I watched recently. So, here we go!


First up, Simply Raw: Reversing Diabetes in 30 Days. I'm sure you've heard this movie mentioned around the blogosphere lately. This documentary film followed 6 Americans with diabetes who come from all over the country who came to Dr. Gabriel Cousen's Tree of Life Rejuvenation Center. Here they dramatically change their diet, from a SAD (standard American diet), to a living foods diet (even with some cacao:). The film followed each attendee as they watched their blood-glucose fall everyday, stopped taking medications (one guy dropped 17 different meds), broke through emotional barriers, and stopped or greatly reduced their insulin intake. The film went through the normal turbulances when it came to the food. Initially there was resistance and bad-mouthing but eventually (as their tastebuds adjusted themselves) they learned to enjoy it and actually speak passionately about it. Let me just say they I would have LOVED to eat there! I was taken aback by the camaraderie that so quickly developed between all them. How they celebrated every drop in blood-glucose, how they rallied around those who really wanted leave, and how they gave tough-love. It was so beautiful and it made me think how quickly change can be achieved if you have a supportive network. I was astonished at how quickly they were able to stop or reduce dramatically their insulin intake. It proved to me (once again) that the body will heal itself if given the right building blocks. I also loved how simple everything was and that the attendees weren't scheduled to death. They could walk the beautiful paths around the center, they could call home, they could go into the town. I know they agreed to certain parameter ,such as no drinking, but other than that it seemed so "organic."At the end of the film they looked like new people, not only because of the weight loss, but because they had hope for the first time that they could live an insulin-free lifestyle.

I really enjoyed this film and how "let food be thy medicine" was used successfully to help 6 people overcome or manage their diabetes. I also love how the film didn't focus so much on the food itself, but the change that food brought to those 6 individuals. I think "actions speak louder than words" was displayed fantastically during this film. If you or any of your loved ones have diabetes, I highly suggest you watch this film. I also think every doctor in the WORLD should watch this film. Today's medical world is so focused on research for a cure or more advanced diabetes technology, yet they rarely ever focus on the basics (diet, exercise, emotional support). This film blew advanced technology out of the water!!

Trailer here

The other movie that I watched was The Future of Food. This 2004 documentary film by Deborah Koons Garcia walks through all the technological, political, ethical, and environmental challenges facing today's (and the future's) food supply. The films main focus was on genetically modified food crops. I'm sure you all have heard of Monsanto, the huge agricultural company responsible for the herbicide, Round Up and for developing round up-ready crops (among many other atrocities). The film walked through how this massive company is bullying its way to become the leader in agricultural practices. How they are researching and "playing around" with the genetics of more and more crops. Currently, they have developed roundup-ready canola, corn, sugar beets, soy, and cotton. The film also shows how "life" became patentable and has now opened the door to huge companies and researchers who can now have control over things like the breast cancer gene (yes, its true). The film also documents how the majority of consumers do not want to eat foods that are genetically modified. Yet, companies are getting away with murder, because they don't have to label products as a GMO. Basically, if a product says it has corn or soy in it, in some form or another, its altered. This is a sad fact! How did the government and food protection agencies allow these products to enter the market if there is no real research as to its effects on the body? They don't allow a vitamin made from a plant source to enter the market unless its been tested vigorously. Yet, a product that is altered from its natural state to some monster get's into every soda cans no problem. A little biased would you say? The film follows how corrupt the industry of food really is and how dollar bills and power are more important than the health of the public and the planet. Remember the big news the other month about all the honey bees dying off? I like to do easy math, so 1(pesticides, gmo crops, roundup ready crops) + 1 (honey bees pollinating these crops) = DEATH. Maybe I should take that to the government as they seem a little slow in getting this math on their own. There also was talk about all the chemical pesticides and fertilizers and how the bugs are becoming resilient to these chemicals and so they have to spray more and more ( with products similar to Agent Orange). Do you see how organic farm and farmers should be supported now more than ever. Because who wants a salad with a side of agent orange?(and oh ya, DDT is still being used today in foreign countries because that's where we shipped it to after we were not allowed to use it anymore) The film also showed the beautiful side of food production too. There was talk about CSA (community sustainable agriculture) and organic farmers. They showed beautiful markets and gorgeous produce and how important it is to support these as , quite literally, our future depends on it. If you do not have a market in your area and you shop strictly at a grocery store, here is a trick that you can use to determine if the food is GMO or not.

A conventially (with chemicals) grown fruit or vegetable has a PLU with 4 digits.

An organic food has a PLU with 5 digits and begins with a 9.

A GMO food has a PLU with 5 digits and begins with an 8.

I really enjoyed this film, although it made me very angry as to how the food in this country and the world is valued. I know that Monsanto is getting questioned everyday and countries are taking a stand to not accept its products in their ports. We need to support legislation that protects farmers who do not want to use GM crops and that puts more restraints and limits to GM research and development. Also, we need to vote with our dollars. The more people will buy a non-gmo or organic product over the conventional one, the more the companies with produce those products. Supply and demand!
And oh ya, Monsanto can go to H-E-double hockey sticks (at least that's my opinion)!

Trailer here

Have you seen these movies? What were your thoughts?

Have a great Sunday! I'm off to take some pictures of me in a bikini! I'll tell you all about that very soon!