Laughter was punctuated with gasps as almost 100 members of the public were bombarded by scenes of fast food fatties in the film 'Supersize Me' on Tuesday night.

In support of heart month, the Department of Health, in collaboration with the Bermuda Heart Foundation (BHF), The Royal Gazette's Have a Heart Campaign and the Bermuda Diabetes Association showed the film at the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute (BUEI).

The documentary was directed by and starred Morgan Spurlock.

Mr. Spurlock was in great health before he ventured on a month-long McDonald's indulgence.

During the filming, he dined at McDonald's restaurants three times per day, sampling every item on the chain's menu at least once.

After 30 days, he had gained 24.5 pounds, a 13 percent body mass increase and his Body Mass Index (BMI) rose from 23.2 (within the 'healthy' range of 19-25) to 27, 'overweight'.

Yesterday, Catherine Smith who watched the film said the results were shocking.

The film should be shown in schools, she said.

"I thought it was an eye-opener," Ms Smith said. "It definitely makes you aware of what you are eating. You take things for granted, but when you see his experiences, it's scary.

"We need to put that in schools. Everybody needs to watch that movie."

Laruna Lambert also watched 'Supersize Me' and was amazed at how addictive unhealthy food can actually be.

"It's interesting cause my co-workers all think that McDonald's puts crack in there and he finds that in the cheese there are actually endorphins that addict you," she said.

Shown during heart month, the film was also meant to highlight the high obesity rate in Bermuda.

According to the 2006 Health Survey, 13 percent of adults in Bermuda eat fast food three times per week and 80 percent eat it at least once a week.

These startling statistics are the reason for the Coronary Health Improvement Project (CHIP) in Bermuda being run by Hillary Evans-Turner.

Her third programme to improve health numbers on the Island will finish this week and a whole new batch of healthy hearts will be taking the streets.

Rather then forcing participants onto a diet, CHIP leads them through four weeks of three sessions per week on healthier alternatives.

Last October, Marie Binns decided to join the programme because, as a nurse and CPR trainer, she wanted to set an example for those she tries to teach.

"I had been trying to see if I could get a programme going seriously for a long time," she said. "This was an excellent programme with a lot of camaraderie. I learned a lot."

Ms Binns credits the course with introducing exercise to her daily routine and making her more aware of her body and how healthy eating and exercise can affect it.

She said she is still working on healthy eating but continues to try hard — and that counts.

As part of the Bermuda Heart Foundation's Heart Month, there have also been cooking classes held each Thursday at different locations.

Tonight there will be a class from 6 to 8 p.m. at CedarBridge.

Health screening will also be available this month so the public can learn whether their blood pressure, blood sugar, waist and weight measurements are within healthy ranges. Tracking these numbers is key to keeping potential health problems within manageable ranges.

Tomorrow everyone can have their numbers checked from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Universal Barbershop.

Ms Binns said after four weeks on a high fibre, low fat, low salt, low sugar and exercise programme, her numbers changed.

She dropped her total cholesterol from 280 to 212, her LDL from 181 to 133, her glucose from 96 to 72, lost eight pounds and reduced her blood pressure from 138/113 to 134/74.

Her resting pulse also dropped from 82 to 77.

"Exercise was vital," she said. "I think I was the only one in the group that was consistently increasing my exercise programme. I went from walking two miles a day to six miles a day.

"As a result my blood pressure was down, my cholesterol was down, my blood sugars were down, everything. I was really chuffed with those results.

"Now I look forward to my exercise. It's the main thing. I have to do it."

For more information on the CHIP programme visit www.chiphealth.com.