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Tyler Lundquist
NURT-1020
Claire Bagley
April 14, 2020

That Sugar Film (Summary)

In the documentary That Sugar Film Australian television and film actor Damon Gameau

embarks on a 6o day experiment eating so called “heathy foods” that contain high amounts of

sugar and through this journey Gameau documents his bodies reactions, feelings and emotions

with the help of multiple experts on his side.

- David Gillespie aka “The Crusader” author and chief sugar advisor

- Dr. Ken Sikaris aka “Professor Blood” a leading pathologist in Australia for bloodwork

- Dr. Sharon Johnston aka “Celtic Food Queen” an Australian nutritionist

- Dr. Debbie Herbst aka “Check Upz” monitors Gameau’s overall health

In the beginning of the documentary Gameau explains why he began eating healthy years

prior to doing this experiment and explains what his goals and expectations are throughout his

60-day journey. The experiment is performed to document the effects on the human body

while eating a high sugar diet in today’s times in a normal heathy human body. His goal is to not

eat candy, ice cream and other high sugar dense foods but to eat and drink the so called

‘heathy” alternatives marketed throughout the world. Gameau sets out to eat 160 grams

(40tsp) of sugar per day and keep his daily calories close to his normal intake.
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Gameau’s normal daily intake consisted of 2300 calories, 50% good fats, 26% protein and

24% carbohydrates. His weight started out at 167 lbs. with a waist circumference of 33.07

inches. All blood tests revealed very heathy liver function and a low level of triglycerides and

was said to be slightly heathier than the average western male.

As the days go by Gameau documents his journey and explains the sugar industries, foods

themselves and the effects these processed sugars have on the human body including his own.

By the time Gameau reaches the halfway mark he is experiencing the affects of his sugar intake

he is feeling more lethargic, mood swings, headaches and many more. On the 30-day mark

Gameau’s weight had increased to 178 lbs. that’s an 11-pound difference from 30 days prior

and his waist circumference increased 2.75 inches. He explained how it is now hard to feel

“full” and finds himself snacking much more than he used to.

By this time Gameau has flown to the United States and documents his time and diet

throughout the US. He finds that it is very difficult to stay under the 160-gram (40tsb) sugar

limit he has for himself. Not only do a ton of foods in the US have sugar in their foods high

fructose corn syrup has been added to everything. Gameau visits with a variety of different

specialists around the states discussing different effects these sugars have had on people and

the community.

By the end of the sugar experiment Gameau had gained a total of 18.74 lbs., added 7% to

his total body fat and his waist increased by almost 4 inches. His Triglycerides went from .08 to

1.5 (risky) and his liver went from 20 below the safety zone to 20 above the safety zone.
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The most enlightening thing about the experiment for Gameau was that his calorie intake

was basically the same for the experiment as it was pre experiment “its not the calories it’s the

source”. Gameau recommends removing fructose from your diet and your natural appetite

suppression will begin to work again. Based on his findings through his extraordinary sugar

journey his final words of advice are as follows.

- Remove fructose from your diet, you will notice major differences and health benefits.

- While grocery shopping move around the edges of the store and avoid the middle.

- Educate todays children and the dangers of sugar, hopefully they can avoid the mistakes

we have made.

- Give up refined sugar

- Men should have 9 tsp. per day, women should have 6 tsp. per day

- Sugar is not to blame for the problem, but it does play a huge role.

Gameau final comments explain how he has adjusted to the diet, but he is not nearly as

efficient, his fuse is shorter and often feels exhausted. He states if someone eats sugar all the

time, they may not realize how cloudy/fuzzy their mind is and with the proper adjustments

people could experience the feeling of living without sugar.

Which documentary and why?

I decided to pick The Sugar Film first because it was the first free documentary, I was

able to find on Amazon Prime, second, I thought the topic was interesting. I have recently

decided to make the lifestyle transition from high carb/high sugar diet to a low carb/low sugar

diet. I felt I could use the lessons learned throughout the documentary to help guide me in the
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right direction in my personal life and goals as well. I am happy I chose this film it was both

informational and eye opening. Gameau really makes you think about what you are putting into

your body and how destructive it can be.

Who is the author? What is their nutrition background?

Damon Gameau is an Australian television and film actor. He also wrote That Sugar Book which

reached the top of the health and well-being best seller list in Australia. Gameau did include

multiple health experts throughout his documentary (doctors and scientists).

When was this documentary produced? Do you think the themes are still applicable today?

Why or why not?

I struggled to find an exact production date for the film, but the film’s release date was early

2015 (February) in Australia and Mid (July) 2015 in the USA. I do feel the themes and material

are still applicable today. At the start of the 20th century sugar was still considered a treat and

since then the sugar epidemic and considerably increased over time. Today almost all our foods

and drinks have some sort of added sugar. Worldwide obesity has nearly tripled since 1975. In

2016, more than 1.9 billion adults were overweight and over 650 million were obese. Sugars

may not be the only contributor to this problem, but it has played a huge role in it.

Compare and contrast 3 topics in the documentary to your textbook.

Serving sizes and added sugars have increased in our country for example in the 1950’s a soda

serving was a 6.5oz (Contemporary Nutrition). Today Jamba Juice smoothie has 139 grams
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(34.75tsp.) of sugar in one drink. The equivalent to that in real fruits would be 30 lemons, 4

peaches, 9 limes, and 30 strawberries (That Sugar Film).

What did you learn about nutrition from completing this assignment? 

Sometimes the heathy alternatives are not as nutritious or as “healthy” as one would think. It is

important to fuel you body with fresh, non-processed and whole foods and limit your sugar

intake. This may be a hard task for some, but in the end overall health, wellbeing, energy levels,

body and mind will all benefit from the transition from a “standard American” diet to a low

carb/low sugar diet/lifestyle. One can still eat a low carb lifestyle without feeling like they are

on a so-called diet. Once a person can experience the feeling of clarity away from sugar they

may never return!

What new idea/point of view did you learn about?

I thought it was interesting that Gameau was able to eat the same calories on his sugar diet as

he did with his normal low carb diet and that was significant impacts on his body. This goes to

show “its not the calories, it is the source of the calories”. There is a huge difference between

healthy fats and processed sugars.

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Sources Cited

“That Sugar Film.” IMDb, IMDb.com, 31 July 2015, www.imdb.com/title/tt3892434/.

“That Sugar Film.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 23 Feb. 2020,

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/That_Sugar_Film.

Buckmaster, Luke. “That Sugar Film: How 60 Days of Eating 'Health Food' Led to Fatty Liver
Disease.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 3 Mar. 2015,
www.theguardian.com/film/2015/mar/03/that-sugar-film-how-60-days-eating-health-food-
led-fatty-liver-disease.

Wloszczyna, Susan. “That Sugar Film Movie Review & Film Summary (2015): Roger Ebert.”
Movie Review & Film Summary (2015) | Roger Ebert, www.rogerebert.com/reviews/that-
sugar-film-2015.

Gameau, Damon. “40 Spoons of Sugar a Day: the Story behind That Sugar Film.” World Cancer
Research Fund International, www.wcrf.org/int/blog/articles/2015/09/40-spoons-sugar-
day-story-behind-sugar-film.