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Parents' Guide to

I Want to Save Your Life

By Melissa Camacho, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 11+

Diet interventions are compassionate and realistic.

TV WE Reality TV 2009
I Want to Save Your Life Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this TV show.

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What's the Story?

I WANT TO SAVE YOUR LIFE is a reality series featuring author and self-proclaimed diet detective Charles Stuart Platkin as he stages undercover health interventions for people feeling trapped by unhealthy lifestyle choices. Each episode features Platkins going undercover and collecting information about his subjects' bad eating habits and non-existent exercise routines. After revealing himself, the diet detective spends a week acting as their nutritionist, fitness trainer and therapist to help them break bad habits and initiate healthier ones. Approximately four months later he returns to see if they were able to stay on track and are leading healthier and happier lives.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: Not yet rated
Kids say: Not yet rated

Unlike many weight-loss shows, this series moves away from the idea of extreme exercising and dieting and focuses on restoring ones physical and emotional balance in order to live a healthier life. While there is a lot of attention paid to losing weight, the show's real focus is on the importance of developing a better sense of self-awareness in order to initiate positive lifestyle changes from within. Also worthwhile are the various examples of how people can make these changes by weaving healthy and realistic alternatives into their busy and often challenging lives.

Platkins is both well intentioned and compassionate as he highlights the importance of empowering oneself to commit to a healthy lifestyle that will improve their lives, rather than helping them fit into a lifestyle that has been designed by others. This focus on self-empowerment sends a positive message about being healthy, and underscores the idea that losing weight isn't just about dropping pounds, but is also a result of finding the strength to regain a sense of self.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about what would motivate people to share their weight-loss journeys on television. Why do you think people are willing to share some of these very personal experiences so publicly? Do you think shows like this really help people lose weight or make healthier habits? Families can also talk about losing weight vs. living a healthy lifestyle. How can someone start rebalancing his/her life in order to look and feel better? Does living a balanced life mean having a healthy body image? Parents, check out our tips for talking to your kids about their physical health and its relationship to the media.

TV Details

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

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