September 20, 2004

After watching the movie “Super Size Me” Saturday night at the State Theatre in downtown Modesto, Valerie Valdez walked out disgusted.

The 17-year-old from Livingston didn’t hate the movie, but her stomach was turning as she thought about all the fast food she eats.

“I knew it was bad for you, but I didn’t know it could do that much to you,” Valdez said of the film director’s all-fast-food diet. “I don’t want to eat fast food again.”

Local health organizations are hoping the award-winning film will make young moviegoers take a healthier look at what they eat.

The self-described, tongue-in-cheek documentary follows filmmaker Morgan Spurlock as he hits the road living on nothing but McDonald’s fast food, according to supersizeme.com, the film’s Web site.

Along the way, Spurlock interviews experts from former U.S. Surgeon General David Satcher to gym teachers, hoping to reveal what’s making Americans fat.
Valdez watched the movie with her father, Juan Valdez. He said it’s hard for parents with tight schedules to find a quick nutritious meal. “You give into temptation just to feed the family on a whim,” Juan Valdez said. “We’re going to try like heck to change.”

The HEART (Heart Education Awareness Resource Team) Coalition of Stanislaus County is sponsoring the nine showings of “Super Size Me.” The final showing is scheduled at 7 p.m. Wednesday. The coalition is comprised of several local health agencies.

Phoebe Leung is associate director of the Health Services Agency of Stanislaus County, chairwoman of the HEART Coalition and a registered dietician. She said it is hoped the film can get audiences to realize that what they eat can lead to cardiovascular disease.
During the making of the film, Spurlock had to eat every item on the McDonald’s menu at least once and could only super-size the item if offered, according to the film’s Web site.
Leung said nobody should run out of the theater to boycott McDonald’s or any other fast-food restaurant.

“It’s not about pointing fingers at anyone,” Leung said. “We just want them to be aware of the nutritional content of fast food.”

Leung said the coalition wants to focus on reducing child obesity and the prevention of heart disease. She said not only is fast food a concern, but the film also points to lack of exercise for young people as a cause for heart disease.

“I hope this movie reaches younger audiences: teens and college students,” Leung said. “We want them to know how to eat healthy and how to influence change.”

Bee staff writer Rosalio Ahumada can be reached at 578-2330 or lahumada@modbee.com