Can man live on fast food alone? Morgan Spurlock tried to do just that. For thirty days, he ate nothing but three "squares" a day from McDonald's as part of an investigation into the effects of fast food on American health. The resulting documentary film, Super Size Me, won him resounding applause and a worldwide release that broke box-office records. Audiences were captivated by his experiment, during which he gained twenty-five pounds, his blood pressure skyrocketed, and his libido all but disappeared. But this story goes far beyond his own "Mc-Sickness": he traveled across the country, into schools, hospitals, and people's homes, to investigate school lunch programs, the marketing of fast food, and the declining emphasis on health and physical education. He interviewed experts in medicine, nutrition, law, and marketing. He looks at why fast food is so tasty, cheap, and ultimately seductive, and what Americans can do to turn the rising tide of obesity, hypertension, and diabetes that have accompanied its ever-growing popularity.

Includes bibliographical references (p. [285]-308).