Evidence-Based Science: Video Shows Impact of Processed Foods on Human Digestion
January 25, 2012 in Evidence-Based Science, Health News
This past weekend, I tuned into TEDx Manhattan 2012, “Changing the Way We Eat”, a day-long seminar with inspirational speakers from the food world. Needless to say, I was stoked! My “highlights” review will be featured in a guest post on the real food blog Hartke is Online. Until then, I thought to share a little snippet from the seminar. One of my favorite presentations was not a talk, but a recorded video that shows rather than tells how the human body digests processed food as opposed to real (whole) food. For all the doubters out there, this is hard-core evidence that the body was not meant to digest Cheetos, Gatorade, Cheerios, Ramen noodles, or any of the synthetic so-called “foods” out there. If you’re still not convinced that you need to abandon your junk food ways, I urge you to watch this video; it’ll speak for itself:
Stefani Bardin is the talented media maker behind this video. In collaboration with Dr. Braden Kuo who conducted the trial at Massachusetts General Hospital, she filmed the “M2A: The Fantastic Voyage”, a video that for the first time in human history actually brings us into the digestive tract while the food is being digested, and compares the difference between how the body processes synthetic food and real food. The M2A pill, which has a wireless camera, and the SmartPill which comes with sensors, both track how liquids and solids ingested are processed by the body.
We see how blue Gatorade stains the stomach lining because of the artificial color added (a petrochemical derivative!), and how Ramen noodles are not effectively broken down in the digestive tract (they contain TBHQ which is related to butane) … ugh, gross! The “whole food meal”, while definitely more nutritious than the junk food alternative, is still not ideal, but at least the body knows what to do with it! This goes to show you that even incremental changes in your diet can either heal or further complicate your digestion…
So, next time a medical doctor urges you to give your sick child a colorful Gatorade to “replenish his electrolytes” when he or she has a fever (advice that makes me recoil in horror every time), I urge you to email him or her this video … and then find yourself another doctor!
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Thanks for sharing this fantastic piece of visual evidence proving what we’ve known all along…fake food isn’t processed by the body! I was inspired by your post and I wrote a little blurb about it on my health blog. Your “Life in a Pyramid” is beautiful and inspiring. THanks for your work in this realm!
Hi Gabi! I don’t know how I missed your comment till now. Thanks so much for the genuine compliment and for sharing the video! I’ve been convinced for a while now that real foods are the way to go, but videos like this serve the purpose of dispelling the ever-popular myths that processed foods “in moderation” aren’t that bad. They are. The body is meant to eat only real foods — not some dehydrated, processed snacks or colored chemical drinks — which don’t exist in nature! Thanks for spreading the word about this video, and thank you for helping spread the truth about health on your blog as well!
[...] problem is that sodium (and it’s derivatives) is found in excess in a lot of processed and pre-packaged foods, and most people eat a lot of those unhealthy foods. I’m not going to be discussing the [...]
What a fascinating and disturbing video! Thanks so much for sharing this. I am slightly disturbed by the fact that they put a camera, in a pill, inside someone’s body, especially for a real food experiment, but I don’t know how you’d get that video otherwise. However, it is very eye-opening to see how the ramen is still identifiable after being in the body that long. Thanks so much for introducing yourself at Beyond The Peel. Glad to have found your great blog!
Joshua @ Beyond The Peel recently posted..“Folks, This Ain’t Normal” – A Short Video on Joel Salatin’s Book
Hi there Josh! Loved Beyond the Peel! Thanks for stopping by and for your comment. I too was disturbed when I watched the video. I don’t like the concept of swallowing a camera either … but I love the purpose of the experiment: to prove to the doubting “scientific” world that there is a difference between how the body digests REAL food and processed food. I don’t need the “evidence” … but some people need to see to believe, and this provides the evidence for those looking for it. Take care, and stay in touch!