When the film begins we are introduced or rather reintroduced to Hippocrates belief that the human body has the capacity to heal itself. This may have been somewhat true before we had advancements in medicine and technology, but now we have so many options that secure the safety of our health. In todays world, we have modern Western medicine and pharmaceutical drug industries that make sure the job gets done rather than depending on our own body stability. The documentary presents rather shocking information regarding the significantly lower nutritional value that our food has by the time it has reached our table. For example, Andrew Saul expresses to the audience that the food we eat, more than likely, travels thousands of miles before we see it at our local grocery stores. In the time that it takes to reach the grocery store, your purchasing, and consume the product, it can lose many vital nutrients. These claims are supported by a 2003 study done by Michigan State Universitys Center for Regional Food Systems. Charlotte Gerson, a star in the film, and founder of the Gerson Institute, goes on to highlight the issues regarding the poor quality of the soil in which many of our most nutritionally dense foods are grown. Most fertilizers contain nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, but plants actually require a total of 52 minerals to be present in the soil for exceptional growth, according to Gerson. Gersons claims are supported in his book A Cancer Therapy: Results of Fifty Cases. Also, David Wolfe, an active official on raw food and superfoods, exclaims that cooked food triggers an immune system response. This response is better known as digestive leukocytosis. It follows a claim that eating a diet composed of less than 5% raw meals will overwork our immune system. The
se claims are backed by research done by Dr. Paul Kouchakoff in 930. In essence, the film encourages the viewer to rethink his entire diet and way of consuming food.
The film now shifts into explaining how Americans have gotten so far off the leading nutritional track. American families usually spend their earnings on things that are not beneficial to their overall well-being. Families can spend their money on nicer houses, cars, and vacations, but health is typically not of the utmost importance. The films starring speakers expressed that the new American motto has become, Have an ill? Take a pill.. Drug consumption in todays world has become more commercialized than ever before. Society is more concerned with what treats diseases than what promotes long-lasting health. Food Matters focuses the blame on our own doctors. Phillip Day and Dr. Ian Brighthope both speak in the film on the idea that the research being presented to the general public about new pharmaceutical drugs and various treatments is being largely funded by the pharmaceutical companies that produce those drugs. This claim is supported by various studies published in 200 by the Journal of the American Medical Association, which indicated that the pharmaceutical industry-funded about 60% of the funding for biomedical research. It doesnt stop there, Andrew Saul indicates his own personal experiences that include his studying in hospitals where doctors rarely knew much about anything regarding proper nutrition and vitamin consumption. For the main part, Food Matters wants the audience to know the truth about industries we are getting their products from as well as how society has turned its back on nutrition by leaving the majority of Americans either falsely or not properly educated about proper wellness.