"Sugar" (Last Week Tonight, October 26, 2014) is available from HBO on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MepXBJjsNxs

NOTE: The portion shown at LOEX is from 4:12-6:55

Possible Activities: 

• Define “conflict of interest”
• Research The Sugar Association
• Research Andy Briscoe (President of the Sugar Association)
• Research James M. Rippe, M.D. 

Possible Activities: 

• Compare texts: View the entire interview with James Rippe (on YouTube). Did the piece from Last Week Tonight adequately represent his comments?
• Critique: Review the conflict of interest statement and conclusion of this study: Mattes et al (2011) Nutritively sweetened beverage consumption and body weight: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized experiments. Obesity Reviews, 12(5), 346-365.
• Research: Find the original articles mentioned in the piece (from the NY Times and PLOS Medicine). Do the full text of those sources represent what was shown in the piece?
• Problem-based: Work with a small group to brainstorm alternative funding structures for research studies. Who should pay, and why?

Notes from all groups at the session: 

• Authority
• What do the students know about the issue?
• Perspective of students from their experience (school, etc.)
• Who is the ultimate authority?
• How do I know to believe? Using your common sense, what is the motive behind?
• Why is sugar bad? Is it?
• CEOS - who are the players, bias
• Talk about fructose
• "Sugar" in quotation marks, dismissive?

Notes from all groups at the session: 

• bias research
• peer-reviewed
• Look at this source - sweetsurprise.com. Is it biased in favor of sugar?
• Corporate vs. independent research
• What is clamato?