What the Health - wikipedia What the Health What the Health Movie poster for What the Health Directed by Kip Andersen Keegan Kuhn Produced by Kip Andersen Keegan Kuhn Written by Kip Andersen Keegan Kuhn Music by Kip Andersen Keegan Kuhn Fernando Arce Cinematography Keegan Kuhn Edited by Kip Andersen Keegan Kuhn Ali Tabrizi ( assistant ) Distributed by A.U.M. Films & Media Release date March 7, 2017 ( 2017 - 03 - 07 ) ( New York ) Running time 92 minutes Country United States Language English What the Health is a 2017 documentary film which critiques the health impact of meat and dairy products consumption, and questions the practices of the leading health and pharmaceutical organizations. Its primary purpose is to advocate for a plant - based diet. The documentary has been highly criticized by a number of medical doctors, dietitians, and investigative journalists for what they describe as confusing causation with correlation, cherry picking science studies, using biased sources, distorting study findings, and using `` weak - to - non-existent data ''. Contents 1 Synopsis 2 Production 3 Featured individuals 4 Reception 5 Book 6 See also 7 References 8 External links Synopsis Advertised as `` The Health Film That Health Organizations Do n't Want You To See '', the film follows Kip Andersen as he interviews physicians and other individuals regarding diet and health. Andersen is also shown attempting to contact representatives of various health organizations, but comes away dissatisfied with their responses. Through other interviews he examines the alleged connection between the meat, dairy, and pharmaceutical industries, as well as various health organizations. The synopsis is that serious health problems are a consequence of consuming meat and dairy products, and that a conspiracy exists to cover this up. Production What the Health was written, produced, and directed by Kip Andersen and Keegan Kuhn, the production team for the documentary Cowspiracy. What the Health was funded via an Indiegogo campaign in March 2016, raising more than $235,000. The film was released globally on Vimeo on March 16, 2017, and screenings licensed through Tugg Inc. Featured individuals The following individuals were featured in the film, in order of appearance : Michael Greger ( physician, NYT bestselling author ) Michael Klaper ( physician, author ) Neal Barnard ( clinical researcher, author, president of PCRM ) Caldwell Esselstyn ( Cardiovascular Prevention program, Cleveland Clinic Wellness Institute physician, author ) Kim A. Williams ( cardiologist, president of ACC ) John McDougall ( physician, bestselling author ) Michele Simon ( public health lawyer, author ) Steve - O ( comedian, actor in Jackass ) Ryan Shapiro ( historian of national security, MIT ) David Carter ( former NFL defensive lineman ) Timothy Shieff ( world champion freerunner, Ninja Warrior ) Tia Blanco ( professional surfer, double ISA World Surfing champion ) Reception The documentary has drawn criticism from many, including scientific skeptics, concerned with its misrepresentation of the facts : On July 3, 2017, medical doctor and founder of Turntable Health, Zubin Damania, acting in his ZDoggMD persona, reviewed What the Health on his YouTube channel. Damania agreed with the documentary 's assertion that a diet heavy in processed food was associated with negative health effects and that the Food and Drug Administration sometimes offered `` stupid nutrition recommendations '' regarding recommending a uniform solution for everyone. However, he also commented in detail on what he characterized as frequent confirmation bias and cherry picking of selected data, as well as the oversimplification of complex health issues and rampant misinformation which he observed in the documentary. He also highlighted what he saw as the ridiculous claim made of `` institutionalized racism '' on the part of the dairy industry. Damania concluded in exasperation : `` that was the stupidest ( expletive ) thing I 've ever seen... I feel like I 've lost ( expletive ) brain cells ''. Joel Khan, a cardiologist featured in the film, responded to ZDoggMD 's video via a Medium article titled `` Why ZDoggMD and His Toilet Humor Are Best Flushed and Forgotten ''. Medical doctor Garth Davis, who was featured in the film, addressed ZDogg 's criticism via his official Facebook page, referring to the EPIC and Adventist Health Studies as well as other sources to reiterate that `` meat consumption is strongly correlated with diabetes ''. On July 11, 2017, medical doctor Harriet Hall, known as the SkepDoc, reviewed the documentary on Science - Based Medicine. Her opinion was summarized as follows : `` ' What the Health ' espouses the fairy tale that all major diseases... can be prevented and cured by eliminating meat and dairy from the diet. It is a blatant polemic for veganism, biased and misleading, and is not a reliable source of scientific information. '' At the end of her article she concludes by asserting positive aspects of a plant based diet with `` There are undisputed health advantages to a plant - based diet... '' and `` We as a society should eat more plant foods... '' but counterpoints this with ``... the evidence is insufficient to recommend that everyone adopt a vegan diet '' and `` we need n't entirely reject all animal foods ''. Finally, she recommends moderation in all things. On 20 July 2017, emeritus professor in nutrition Martijn Katan from Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam called the film `` propaganda '', which exaggerates the health risks of meat, eggs and dairy, and rather dangerously claims veganism prevents or cures just about any disease, like cancer or diabetes. However, he stressed that everyone should eat less meat than the population currently does on average, and that going completely vegan can be a healthy lifestyle if you make sure you get all nutrients you need ( though this is hard to do for young children, for whom he did not recommend a vegan diet ) and it 's also good for the environment. In a review of the film by investigative journalist Nina Teicholz on DietDoctor.com, Teicholz praised the filmmakers ' skills of persuasion, but concluded that the film 's claims are not backed by scientific evidence. Sarah Berry, Lifestyle Health Editor for The Sydney Morning Herald read the documentary website after her friend sent her a link to it. According to Berry, `` What the Health does make some valid points including concerns about the influence of Big Food on dietary recommendations and about poor farming practices, which can be both inhumane and bad for the planet. '' adding that `` The makers cherry - pick science, use biased sources, distort study findings and use `` weak - to - non-existent data... '' Berry quoted Dr. Joanna McMillan as saying that `` To me it 's the usual product of those who are filmmakers and not nutrition scientists or trained in any aspect of medicine or science, therefore not trained or qualified to make sense of scientific research. '' Book A companion book of the same name was released February 2017. It was authored by Eunice Wong, who is married to journalist Chris Hedges. See also List of films featuring diabetes References Jump up ^ Zubin Damania MD. `` A Doctor Watches `` What The Health '' ``. ZDoggMD. Archived from the original on July 29, 2017. Retrieved August 3, 2017. Jump up ^ Hall MD, Harriet ( 11 July 2017 ). `` What the Health : A Movie with an Agenda ''. Science - Based Medicine. Archived from the original on July 29, 2017. Jump up ^ Messina MPH, RD, Virginia. `` A Vegan Dietitian Reviews `` What the Health '' ``. Vegan.com. Archived from the original on July 29, 2017. Retrieved August 3, 2017. CS1 maint : Multiple names : authors list ( link ) Jump up ^ Penner RD. Jessica. `` what the health review -- the good, the bad, and the ugly ''. Smart Nutrition. Archived from the original on July 29, 2017. Retrieved August 3, 2017. Jump up ^ Susie Burrell ( July 21, 2017 ). `` Nutritionist Susie Burrell reviews Netflix 's new documentary What The Health ''. news.com.au. Jump up ^ Julia Belluz ( July 25, 2017 ). `` Debunking What the Health, the buzzy new documentary that wants you to be vegan : The film on Netflix mischaracterizes what we know about food and disease. ''. Vox. Jump up ^ `` ' What the Health ' Review : Health Claims Backed by No Solid Evidence - Diet Doctor ''. 18 July 2017. Jump up ^ Charles Mandel ( February 8, 2016 ). `` DiCaprio - backed Cowspiracy directors find new conspiracy to milk ''. Jump up ^ Michael D'Estries ( February 11, 2016 ). `` The guys behind ' Cowspiracy ' are back to tackle personal health ''. Mother Nature Network. Retrieved February 15, 2017. Jump up ^ Jackie Day ( January 23, 2016 ). `` Cowspiracy Film Makers Announce NEW film : What the Health ! ''. My Vegan Journal. Jump up ^ `` What the Health ''. Indiegogo. Retrieved February 15, 2017. Jump up ^ Anna Starostinetskaya ( April 15, 2016 ). `` Vegan Filmmakers Raise Money to Qualify for Oscars ''. VegNews. Retrieved February 15, 2017. Jump up ^ `` Watch What the Health Online ''. Vimeo On Demand. Retrieved February 15, 2017. Jump up ^ `` What the Health ''. Tugg.com. Retrieved 27 July 2017. Jump up ^ `` About the film ''. www.whatthehealthfilm.com. Retrieved 15 July 2017. ^ Jump up to : Damania, Zubin. `` A Doctor Watches `` What The Health '' ``. Youtube.com. Retrieved 9 July 2017. ; note that expletives were censored with beeps in Damania 's review. Jump up ^ Kahn, Joel ( 2017 - 07 - 06 ). `` Why ZDoggMD and His Toilet Humor Are Best Flushed and Forgotten ''. Medium. Retrieved 2017 - 07 - 14. Jump up ^ `` Dr. Garth Davis ''. www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2017 - 07 - 14. Jump up ^ Hall, Harriet. `` What the Health : A Movie with an Agenda ''. Sciencebasedmedicine.org. Science Based Medicine. Retrieved 11 July 2017. Jump up ^ `` Aflevering 139 ''. RTL Late Night ( in Dutch ). RTL 4. 20 June 2017. Retrieved 20 June 2017. Jump up ^ Nina Teicholz ( July 18, 2017 ). `` ' What the Health ' Review : Health Claims Backed by No Solid Evidence ''. Diet Doctor. Jump up ^ Berry, Sarah ( 20 July 2017 ). `` What the Health : Netflix documentary trades on ' alternative facts ' about veganism '' -- via The Sydney Morning Herald. Jump up ^ Hedges, Chris ( 9 July 2017 ). `` Eating Our Way to Disease ''. Truthdig. Retrieved 10 July 2017. External links Official website What the Health on IMDb Veganism and vegetarianism Perspectives Veganism Animal - free agriculture Fruitarianism History Juice fasting Low - carbon diet Raw veganism Nutrition Vegan organic gardening Vegetarianism Economic vegetarianism Environmental vegetarianism History Lacto vegetarianism Ovo vegetarianism Ovo - lacto vegetarianism Cuisine Vegetarian Diet Pyramid Ecofeminism Nutrition By country Semi-vegetarianism Macrobiotic diet Pescetarianism Lists Vegans Vegetarians Vegetarian festivals Vegetarian festivals Vegetarian restaurants Ethics Secular Animal rights Animal welfare Carnism Deep ecology Environmental vegetarianism Ethics of eating meat Meat paradox Nonviolence Speciesism Tirukkuṛaḷ Religious Buddhism Christianity Hinduism Sattvic Ahimsa Sikhism Rastafari Jainism Judaism Pythagorean diet Food, drink Agar Agave nectar Meat analogue List of meat substitutes Miso Mochi Mock duck Nutritional yeast Plant cream Plant milk Quinoa Quorn Seitan Soy yogurt Tempeh Tofu Tofurkey Cheese Hot dog Vegetarian mark Sausage Beer Wine Veggie burger Groups, events, companies Vegan American Vegan Society Beauty Without Cruelty Food Empowerment Project Go Vegan Movement for Compassionate Living Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine Plamil Foods Vegan Awareness Foundation Vegan flag Vegan Ireland Vegan Outreach Vegan Prisoners Support Group The Vegan Society Veganz World Vegan Day Vegetarian American Vegetarian Party Boston Vegetarian Society Christian Vegetarian Association European Vegetarian Union Hare Krishna Food for Life International Vegetarian Union Jewish Veg Linda McCartney Foods Meat - free days Meatless Monday Swissveg Toronto Vegetarian Association Vegetarian Society Vegetarian Society ( Singapore ) Veggie Pride Viva ! Health World Esperantist Vegetarian Association World Vegetarian Day Books, reports Thirty - nine Reasons Why I Am a Vegetarian ( 1903 ) The Benefits of Vegetarianism ( 1927 ) Diet for a Small Planet ( 1971 ) Moosewood Cookbook ( 1977 ) Fit for Life ( 1985 ) Diet for a New America ( 1987 ) The China Study ( 2004 ) Raw Food Made Easy for 1 or 2 People ( 2005 ) Skinny Bitch ( 2005 ) Livestock 's Long Shadow ( 2006 ) Eating Animals ( 2009 ) The Kind Diet ( 2009 ) Why We Love Dogs, Eat Pigs, and Wear Cows ( 2009 ) Eat & Run ( 2012 ) Meat Atlas ( annual ) Films Meet Your Meat ( 2002 ) Peaceable Kingdom ( 2004 ) Earthlings ( 2005 ) A Sacred Duty ( 2007 ) Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead ( 2010 ) Planeat ( 2010 ) Forks Over Knives ( 2011 ) Vegucated ( 2011 ) Live and Let Live ( 2013 ) Cowspiracy ( 2014 ) What the Health ( 2017 ) Carnage ( 2017 ) Magazines Naked Food Vegetarian Times VegNews Physicians, academics Neal D. Barnard T. Colin Campbell Caldwell Esselstyn Gary L. Francione Joel Fuhrman Michael Greger Melanie Joy Michael Klaper John A. McDougall Reed Mangels Dean Ornish Richard H. Schwartz Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=What_the_Health&oldid=807579117 '' Categories : 2017 films English - language films 2010s documentary films American documentary films American films Documentary films about vegetarianism Hidden categories : CS1 maint : Multiple names : authors list CS1 Dutch - language sources ( nl ) Talk Contents About Wikipedia Deutsch Polski Edit links This page was last edited on 28 October 2017, at 21 : 17. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: who paid to make the documentary what the health
Answer: funded via an Indiegogo campaign