Irresistible: Why We Can't Stop Eating (2024)

Name: Irresistible: Why We Can't Stop Eating
Genre: Documentary
Released: 2025-07-30T16:23:48+02:00
Rating: 3.83

Documentary | 59 minutes

3,83 6 votes

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1 comment

Genre: Documentary

Duration: 59 minuten

Country: United Kingdom

IMDb score: 7,4 (147)

This movie is not available on US streaming services.

Irresistible: Why We Can't Stop Eating plot

Obesity is a major problem in the world, resulting in cardiovascular diseases. One reason for this is that many unhealthy foods are irresistible to people. In this documentary, Dr. Chris van Tulleken investigates what causes this feeling in people. He speaks with former employees from the food industry, among others, who explain how products are designed to be so irresistible.

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Filmkriebel

9953 messages
4646 votes

30 July 2025 at 10:15

A very comprehensive documentary (picked up on CANVAS) about all aspects of ultra-processed foods. The food industry changed consumer eating habits from the 1970s onward, and the share of ultra-processed foods in our diets continued to increase, leading to serious health problems unpredicted in the 1970s and 1980s.

Worse still, the bigwigs behind this industry primarily focus their marketing strategy on increasing consumption. Their R&D departments invest in all sorts of sensory research, such as the optimal amount of sugar in each product, attractive packaging, and even sound effects like crunchiness, for example, when you open a bag. Everything is calculated and planned to encourage purchase.

More contemplative questions are also raised: can ultra-processed food still be considered food? Or is it simply imitation with chemical components? Does this fit into our diet?

Finally, the legal and health aspects are explained, and how the industry does everything it can to avoid government regulation to keep shareholders happy. It's clear that this industry has undergone an undesirable development and has jeopardized the health of millions of people. Food is even more addictive than drugs and cigarettes because it's said to be essential for life.

An informative and nuanced documentary that makes us, as citizens, aware of what ultra-processed food represents and what it does to us. Hopefully, it will encourage us to buy less in the future. The documentary lasted an hour and a half, not one.