As a vocal healthy eating advocate for nearly two decades, Jamie Oliver is thrilled when famous folks use their profile to spread the message about good nutrition.
But lately, the 41-year-old Brit argues, it’s been going too far.
Speaking to Vanessa Brown of news.com.au, the celebrity chef and qualified nutritionist lamented the recent rise in dietary advice being spouted online by Australian celebrities, bloggers and fitness gurus, most of whom have no formal qualifications in the field.
“There’s a lot of self diagnosis going on, and a lot of bulls**t and a lot of total crap being talked about [in food and nutrition],” Oliver said.
“There’s a lot of lies, like ‘oh I had cancer and I cured myself’ from ‘trusted’ sources — there’s a lot of fake stuff.”
His comments come as blogger Belle Gibson, 25, awaits penalties (potentially up to $220,000) for 'misleading and deceptive conduct' over false claims that she cured her brain cancer through diet and alternative therapies.
After profiting hundreds of thousands of dollars from a wellness app, book and social media empire, it was revealed Gibson never had the disease.
The responsibility in cases like these, Oliver argues, lies with the publishers.
“Because if you’re going to inspire people en masse to do something and it’s based on ill fact or lies, that’s a big problem,” he told news.com.au.
Less damaging but also problematic is the so-called war on sugar.
While Oliver has been on the front lines in the fight against childhood obesity and instrumental in lobbying the British government to institute a tax on soft drinks in 2016, he notes that there should be room for kids to indulge occasionally outside the rigid diet of those like Paleo fanatic Pete Evans - "life is about having some treats as well."
Besides, if you set a good example at home, the father of five told news.com.au, there's less need to worry.
“Let them get sick [on lollies]," he said, "because once you’ve had too many sweets, you’ll tend not to do it again."
How often do you let your child have treats? Tell us in the comments below.
Top Comments
Love your work Jamie xx