McDonalds anti "Super Size Me" Propoganda

Inspired by the documentary "Super Size Me," Merab Morgan decided to give a fast-food-only diet a try. The construction worker and mother of two ate only at McDonald's for 90 days -- and dropped 37 pounds in the process.

One person went so far as to make her own independent film about dieting at McDonald's. "Me and Mickey D" follows Soso Whaley, of Kensington, New Hampshire, as she spends three 30-day periods on the diet. She dropped from 175 to 139 pounds, eating 2,000 calories-a-day at McDonald's.

www.cnn.com... .ap/index.html


I'm not sure but I would think that eating McDonalds every day every meal would not be to great for your body. But then again maybe "Super Size Me"
was just a F 9/11 style of documentary.


www.techcentralstation.com...


This site seems to have alot of links to anti "super Size Me' veiws.
I'll have to check into this "Super Size Me" might be nothing more than a hoax.

What does every one else think McDonalds big corp spending big $ to clear grease from their name or telling to trugh?

Jesus! Who are Mc Donalds kidding here!
Whenever I eat a Mc Donalds im ill for lick 3 days. Now correct me if im wrong but that doesnt seem healthy.

HAHAHA! This is so funny, anti-supersizeme propoganda, lol. Why don't you people take the 30 day 3-meals a day BigMac combo diet and call me in a month(if you havn't had a heart attack that is)

I knew this kid who's parents owned a McCraps franchise and they delivered it to him every lunch(and I presumed ate it for Breakfast and Dinner as well) At age 12 he was 310 pounds. I assume he's dead now, or permanetly immobile on his couch.

Originally posted by Raist
I'll have to check into this "Super Size Me" might be nothing more than a hoax.

It's not a hoax to say that if an average person eats 3 average McDonalds meals as pushed (sandwich, soft drink and fries) a day for 30 days, they are taking in too many calories.

I'm sure however, if you're on a diet as these people were, it doesn't matter where you get your water and salad.

That woman on the 2,000 calorie a day diet sure wasn't eating Big Macs.

And F911 was no hoax either unless you think all that file footage was CGI. :shk:

I think she makes a great point! The Supersize Me guy ate 5000 calories a day. This lady ate 2000. It's a matter of the choices they made. She ate a lot of salads and fruit. The other guy pigged out.

She didn't eat Big Macs, she ate hamburgers (probably without cheese).

She ate fries 2X a week instead of 2X a day. It's all about choices and I think she proved her point.

[edit on 13-8-2005 by Benevolent Heretic]

Originally posted by Benevolent Heretic
It's all about choices and I think she proved her point.

Right. But so did he. McDonalds added alot of those choices (fruit, carrot sticks and yogurt) after Super Size me. Got rid of the giant size tubs of fries and soda they used to push for "just a dime more" and all this is as a result of him.

It's not a "response" to prove him wrong. If anything the new menu proves he was right IMO.

It's possible to lose weight eating only at McDonalds, they do have salads, and grilled chicken sandwiches; but my questions is: just because you can, who would want to? I sure wouldn't! Besides I can't eat anything from McDonald's that has been fried, I get sick for the rest of the day. So, I wouldn't be able to reward myself once or twice a week with french fries.

Sure anything possible.

It's possible to lose weight eating only ice cream and chocolate syrup if that's less calories than you're used to.

If I was 300 pounds overweight, and cut my Big Mac intake down by 50%, I'm on a diet!

But "adding" McDonald's to your routine to lose weight is just a bad idea in general.

This propaganda is dangerous.

Like all the people that went pseudo Atkins (not real Atkins) thinking Steak is health food now. :shk: Eat one a day for 30 days without making the carb cuts and see how that works out for ya.

[edit on 13-8-2005 by RANT]

Before anyone else says shes eating hamburgers with out cheese or salads here is the quote under the pic of her and the pic.

She's lovin' it: Merab Morgan eats a cheeseburger in the parking lot of McDonald's in Oxford, North Carolina.

Originally posted by RANT

Originally posted by Raist
I'll have to check into this "Super Size Me" might be nothing more than a hoax.

It's not a hoax to say that if an average person eats 3 average McDonalds meals as pushed (sandwich, soft drink and fries) a day for 30 days, they are taking in too many calories.

I'm sure however, if you're on a diet as these people were, it doesn't matter where you get your water and salad.

That woman on the 2,000 calorie a day diet sure wasn't eating Big Macs.

And F911 was no hoax either unless you think all that file footage was CGI. :shk:

Heheh I didn't say it was a hoax that ppl ate that much I ment that maybe the documentary Super Size Me had some false claims, not saying it did but might have I'm unsure.


And as for F9/11 I was refering to M. Moores film where I agree with hlaf of the things he points out but some of the things he stats were not the whole truth, not that he was lying he just tried to hard to prove lies in the government. My point to that comment was merely not every thing he stated in that film was fully accurate. I believe thats been covered here at ATS in several 9/11 thread, the posters of those threads made some interesting agruments. Not that I fully agree with them either though. But I still see truth in what M.M was saying to a point.

I'm just trying to see all possible sides here. Yes I'm still new and all even though I was reading for a much longer time. But are we not supposed to look at all sides? Is that not what deny ignorance is about?

Just an idea though not trying to cause a stir.

Originally posted by Raist
Just an idea though not trying to cause a stir.

Oh sure, sure, totally.

"Hoax" is a pretty charged assertion of intent in a conspiracy community though. All I was reacting to.

No doubt SSM was one sided. It was more art than anything.

Yeah true I guess I should have used another word other than hoax. Sorry about that. Maybe I should have said that both films as well as this claim could have some misleading information in them.

But the quickest way to learn is through mistakes

My big question is are these ppl claiming to loose weight eating nothing but McDs doing anything else like maybe exercising more or taking dietary supliments. I didn't read anything in the article that they were but it makes you wonder.

Luckiely I've never had to worry about that I eat and never gain been the same weight since high school.

Let's just say I'm not advocating a McDonald's diet!

And "She only ate french fries twice, usually choosing burgers and salads. Those choices are a stark contrast with those made by Spurlock, who ate every menu item at least once."

I'm not trying to cause a stir either (I've got better things to fight about ) but the only point I was trying to make is that you can eat crap all day whether or not you get it from McDonald's or you can eat fairly healthy all day, whether or not you get it from McDonald's.

I didn't know that they came out with "McDee's health" food in response to Supersize Me, but that makes sense.

Originally posted by Raist
Luckiely I've never had to worry about that I eat and never gain been the same weight since high school.

Are you trying to make me hate you?

Originally posted by RANT

Originally posted by Raist
Luckiely I've never had to worry about that I eat and never gain been the same weight since high school.

Are you trying to make me hate you?

LOL I get that alot


I hear what your saying BH I honestly don't think I could eat McDs every day though like the SubWay guy I don't think I could do that either. Prolly not all that healthy but who knows, biggest prob I see would be I'ld get tiered of the same food/type of food daily. That and after a week the costs would realy start to add up.

BTW, although the addition of the Adult Happy Meal (pedometer included...gee, where'd that idea come from?), low-fat dressings, and the removal of the "Super Size" option happened almost immediately after the buzz from "Super Size Me" began gaining momentum, McDonald's says it had absolutely nothing to do with the documentary... uh-huh

I thought a lot of people missed the point of Super Size Me--although the focus was clearly McDonalds, Spurlock was indicting people who carelessly eat high-fat, high-calorie food every day and then are surprised when their organs start falling out. He clearly made the point that abusing food is as dangerous as abusing alcohol or drugs as his McDonald's binge caused his liver to behave as if he had been on a bender. One of the three doctors he was consulting even commented how it was if he was commiting suicide with food just like Nicholas Cage's character did with liquor in "Leaving Las Vegas."

The film also pointed out how education is the main issue--or rather, lack thereof. And this is where McDonald's is really taking advantage of consumer ignorance. With their attempts to establish a more health conscious image, instead of actually offering healthier food, they have just adopted branding that will give customers the perception that their food is healthier. Ronald McDonald may be thinner and wearing a track suit but he probably didn't get that way from eating anything at McDonalds.

The "healthy" image is all marketing BS. Go look at the McDonald's nutritional information for yourself.

And don't be fooled by the bizarre way they have their nutritional facts table scrambled. Interesting how they serve the salad to you all in one bowl but for some reason they list all of the ingredients separately. Unless you do further research or are familiar with their products, you won't know how to combine the calorie counts. And notice how they only do this for the "healthy" options. For the traditional offerings, they don't list the bun separately from the meat or the value of each individual fry. Nothing to hide there--and Big Mac eaters really could care less about nutritional value.

If you order a California Cobb Salad with Crispy Chicken from McDonalds healthier "Premium Salads" menu, the McCounter Person will hand you a bag and in it, you will find a heart attack waiting to happen. 540 calories and 28 grams of fat. A Quarter Pounder with Cheese has 510 calories and 25 fat grams. Unless you say you want grilled instead of crispy chicken, hold the croutons, the bleu cheese, and substitute low-fat for the creamy dressing, you get the standard salad which is anything but healthy.

What kind of band of raving idiots endeavor to make a healthy salad and then assemble something that has the same nutritional value as a Quarter Pounder with cheese, aka the Creme Brulee of hamburgers? Okay, you'd have to be a bit clueless to think that just because cheese and bacon are piled on top of lettuce they automatically become healthy, but you'd be surprised at how many people out there that bow to the supreme authority of healthy-looking green signs. And its not that much cheese and bacon... most people don't know that a tiny one ounce morsel of cheese is 200 calories--and so is one strip of bacon.

The reality is that in the interest of flavor, McDonalds has purposely gone out of their way to make their salads as unhealthy as possible with bacon, buttered croutons, fried breaded chicken, and cheese. I'm surprised they don't deep fry the lettuce.

And don't even get me started on the chicken sandwiches. The Grilled Chicken Club has more calories than a Big Mac. I bet the folks back in Oak Brook are getting a good laugh over this one ("Bacon. Cheese. Good for you. Bwahahahaha!!!")

Sure, someone who has an above average aptitude when it comes to nutrition can go into McDonalds and special order something healthier than the standard menu choices. But is the regular Joe going to study the nutritional table prior to ordering and discover that the "healthy" crispy chicken isn't just a more crunchy version of the "healthy" grilled chicken? Are they going to sum up all of the salad ingredients from the multiple sections to find out how many calories and how much fat they are eating? Are most people going to know to leave off the croutons, bacon, and cheese and pay the same for a bowl of wilted lettuce with that funny been-in-the-package-too-long taste? And although there is only one nutritionally acceptable Grilled Chicken sandwich on the menu, are people going to be able to pick it out of a list of the other 5 options with healthy sounding names, all included on the healthy section of the menu, but for some reason are deep fried, layered with bacon, cheese, and creamy dressings?

I doubt it. People are going to see salad and chicken and assume that it has to be better than hamburgers and french fries. And, OOOooOO--that "healthy" chicken option has bacon.

As if the proximity to chicken makes bacon healthy.

Then again, I really don't think that anyone goes to McDonalds because they want to eat healthy or lose weight. If someone who wants to eat healthy is stuck with no other choice, they can make do with the slim pickins' at Mickey D's, but their menu is certainly not an every day option as in order to reduce calories, you wind up with tiny portions.

One of the women who did go to McDonalds to lose weight, Soso Whaley, did so because she was so disturbed by what she perceived as a smear campaign being waged by Super Size Me director Morgan Spurlock. She was so incensed that she was compelled to act (of all the unsupported and desperate causes in the world, this wackjob chooses to defend one of the largest multi-national companies in existence... ) She made a documentary about her experience--Me & Mickey D's... more here. With all the references to personal responsibility it seems that a) she didn't see the film and b) she has a different axe to grind. It is the National Review after all.

It seems that she adopted a yoyo diet strategy after she binged during the holidays and when her weight was "getting out of control." She claims to have lost 6 to 10 pounds each of the 3 times she went on her 30-day McDonald's diet by eating a variety of McDonald's choices, including the aforementioned California Cobb salad with Crispy Chicken, the Big & Tasty with Cheese (520 calories/26 grams of fat) and Medium Chocolate shake with medium fries (1120 calories/34 fat grams). Her strategy was to stay under 2000 calories a day and exercise moderately.

Losing weight is pretty scientific--lower your caloric intake, increase your activity, and you will lose weight. If she went from eating five pints of Haagen Dazs and a whole suckling pig every day to a 2000 calorie a day diet of hamburgers, milk shakes, blue cheese and french fries (and that would be all of her food for the day), accompanied with exercize, sure she is going to lose some weight. Is it healthy? Uhhh... that would be no.

When I was 16, I found the Victoria Principal bikini diet in Cosmo and used it to lose 6 lbs in a week before a vacation. The total amount of food I had eaten in the seven days prior to my trip could fit in a coffee cup--along with my bikini. If it wasn't for the dizziness, disorientation, and fainting--and not to mention the starving and near intolerable food cravings, I guess you could call this a successful diet too.

And like my crazy bikini diet, Whaley and others like her who are using McDonalds to lose weight are not eating healthy, no matter what the big green sign over the counter says. Just because something has lettuce or chicken in it doesn't mean it is good for you.

In the movie supersize me he was eating mcdonalds 3 times a day. However that amounts to a 5000 calorie diet high in sat fat.

at 5000 calories/day for a guy his size of course he is going to pack on some pounds. the average is 2000 calories.

This isnt a license to go out and eat fast food 2 times a day at 2000 calories either, but If that was the test im not sure if he would have gotten as dramatic results.

I noticed on the side of a subway cup, that any of the subway sandwiches that taste any good (6". that is half the size of a good meal BTW) 6" sandwiches are around or more than big mac or whopper in calories and fat etc.


I work my ass off outside (farmer style) and I eat what I want and I am below the recommended weight. (I am 5'8, 130 lbs)

Rather than toot a horn of stuff, let me say, Subways diet is bollox, McDonalds is full of fat and will make you fat, and anything else obvious? Fat=fat. Excercise or work uses up your bodies stored power.

Whoa!

You have voted lmgnyc for the Way Above Top Secret award. You have two more votes this month.

Im sure any one can loose wait if they only eat 2000 calories a day. But thats impossible I mean with all the food culture. And not just fast food fad foods as well. Its like my dad alwats says.

Ill have a big mac with cheese a large fry and a diet coke. Im on a diet.

This is the telling part:

And "She only ate french fries twice, usually choosing burgers and salads. Those choices are a stark contrast with those made by Spurlock, who ate every menu item at least once."

She's not comparing like with like.

If she had eaten the same menu as Spurlock, and lost weight, she'd have a point.

As it is...she's really coming across somewhat more foolish than she intends, and she's proving only that she hasn't duplicated his experiment, which would be kind of critical if she was really going to show us something we don't already know

As for the fat = fat comment...true. But...there are fats, and there are fats. Not all are the same, and some are much better than others. What might be more important is portion control. This is why we see French women eating (ridiculously!) high fat foods, and having lower rates of heart disease and breast cancer. Portion control. Sure, eat that wonderfully fat-laden dessert...but don't eat three portions of it!

Eat smaller portions, more veggies and don't have 6 Big Macs every day, and move around more. This isn't brain surgery, despite what the diet industry would like us to believe

It is nothing more than making the right choices and moderation. Sure, not all food is good for you but the bottom line is if you keep it in moderation you can still have a burger, pizza etc. Just don't eat a triple burger or a whole pizza. It is really nothing more than self control and common sense.

Of course when it comes to chocolate I toss those rules right out the door..........