Always learning...
Here are just a few examples of documentaries and films out there which challenge the way we manage health and nutrition:
Fat Sick and Nearly Dead
One of the first Netflix documentaries I encountered and a goody. I wasn’t as fussed with the follow up but this one was moving and funny. He is a down to earth guy which makes his message all the more sincere. Some of the off-shoot stories were genuinely touching too.
Fed Up
In this documentary you see the sugar industry behaving scarily like the tobacco industry did in the '60s...
Cowspiracy
Loved this documentary! It wasn’t at all what I had expected from the title; it was a real eye opener to realising the full impact of factory farms on the environment. Cutting down, or out, our meat intake really could be more beneficial than anything else. Shocking, too, to learn that even big name environmental activist groups seem to fear going up against the farming industry, from the stories shared here...
Dallas Buyers Club
A surprising watch! I wasn’t sure where this film was going to go with its attitude toward the drugs companies but it was interesting to find it challenging Big Pharma and the FDA.
The Truth About Cancer
This was such an inspiring and empowering watch as there is a lot of fear surrounding cancer and patients can feel so powerless in the face of treatment programmes - when they most need to feel some control over it.
The Doctor Who Gave Up Drugs
A surprising and pleasing programme about a scientist who is concerned about the overuse and over-prescription of antibiotics. Maybe not all of the prescriptions he gave as alternatives were practical for a GP to prescribe on a daily basis BUT it was refreshing to see common sense alternatives to medication being offered and the power of their effectiveness. What the documentary highlighted is that patients would benefit most from reassurance and support when the going gets tough. Masking symptoms does not work, we need to tackle the root cause and this show demonstrates that.
Doctor in the House
Dr Rangan Chatterjee can be found on BBC iplayer with the second series out now. He is an advocate for finding practical alternatives to medication especially when some patients have become hooked to pain killers which are no longer working for them. The first series highlighted how one man's posture realignment was all it took to overcome the pain he had been experiencing and unsuccessfully managing for 20 years.
The Magic Pill
Ketogenic diets - basically, we need fats. An interesting spin on a stigmatised part of modern diets.