The Men Who Made Us Fat: Jacques Peretti review on BBC2 Are you a TOFI?
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Jacques Peretti is a journalist and broadcaster who has produced many interesting and informative documentaries that really make you stop and think.
(Read about "The men who made us Thin" with shocking statistics here)
His latest project looks at the diet industry and all that surrounds it. It is called “The Men who made us Fat” and airs on 8th August 2013 at 9pm on BBC2. He came up with the idea when he watched the film version of the Roald Dahl book Charlie and the Chocolate factory. Whilst seeing the film again (it first came out in 1971) he was struck that the character of Augustus Gloop seemed to look quite ordinary, whereas when the film came out he was seen as obese and grotesque. At this point he started to wonder what had happened in the years since the film had been made that has changed our view on what is seen as fat.
He takes a visit to Hammersmith Hospital in London and while there he has an MRI scan with Dr Jimmy Bell, to discover just how fat he really is.
Dr Bell specializes in analysing the internal fat of his patients and his studies show that we are all at risk from our diets. Peretti would class himself a fit man. He plays football in the garden, rides his bike to work and walks up the escalators rather than just riding them up. He believes that he is relatively fit from the physical activity that he does undertake.
The results of the test are quite surprising. The scan shows that on the outside he has very little internal fat. The problem is that looking at the results from the MRI scan on the inside his liver is having a few problems. The scan has shown up that his liver is swimming in fat, in fact four to five litres of fat. The news comes as a big shock to him.
The big news is that since the 1960’s there has been a huge increase in the average weight of our population. We are three stone heavier on average than we used to be, and for most people that fat is the internal kind. The kind you don’t see and maybe are not even aware of.
Dr Bell calls this “TOFI” which means thin outside and fat inside.
One of the reasons is because sugar is much more prevalent in our diet than it ever used to be.
So, what can we do to help solve this obesity problem for ourselves?
Firstly we need to cut down on the amount of processed food that we eat. It contains more added sugar and many other additives, so cooking our own meals with fresh food makes a huge difference, as does cutting down on the amount of sugar we take in. Do you know how much sugar is in a glass of Coca Cola ? If you don’t then I won’t tell you because you would not believe me!
We also need to do more exercise. Studies have shown that short, sharp bursts of sprinting, 30 seconds at a time three or four times a week mimic what we did when we were hunter gatherers and burns off the internal fat. Of course you can join a gym, go out walking or cycling or any other number of ideas. The trick is to think of the thing that you would enjoy the most. Don’t make it a chore, make it fun!
Of course it isn’t always easy to do this alone. You may be thinking that you know all this already...so why have you not done anything about it? Is it because it is tough to get motivated and do this alone?
That’s why I have created the Slimmer You Programme to help. Working with you to help your motivation to change your diet and get more exercise you can see a new, happier and healthier you. You don’t need to do it alone you can do it with help. A big part of the programme is that it isn’t about you being on a diet. In fact I am a big fan of the concept of “No More Diets!” read all about it here.
You can find out about the Slimmer You Programme click HERE
Or if you would like to try a FREE MP3 then just click here
..and there is lots more FREE advice on losing weight HERE
I am always happy to speak to you without obligation about how we can work together to get the future that you really would like. Just call 07980 233160 or email me on [email protected]