Celebrity health myths!
Tuesday 05 January 2010
We all know that most celebs are just like us, relying on a military-style team of stylists, makeup artists, nutritionists and personal trainers to keep them in A-List shape.
However, sometimes the stars seem to want to portray the contrary – remember when Pamela Anderson cited her voluptuous figure to “a good bra”, or how
A charity called Sense About Science has publicised a list of celebrity fads that have very little truth in them, in a bid to get us all into eating healthily rather than trusting quick fixes.
So what are the top three celebrity ‘secrets’ that don’t have all that much truth to them? Read on…
MYTH: Cider vinegar will help you lose weight
Stars such as Megan Fox, Cindy Crawford and Fergie all hail it as the secret to their flat stomachs – and with figures like theirs, you’d be inclined to give cider vinegar a go!
Megan went on record saying It just cleanses out your system entirely. It will get rid of, for women who retain water weight from your menstrual cycle and all that, it gets rid of it really fast.”
Cider vinegar is often sold in tablet form as a weight loss aid, with claims that it reduces hunger, helps the liver to cleanse itself, reduces bloating and improves digestion.
However, the charity was quick to de-bunk these health benefits:
More importantly, the ‘benefits’ are things that are impossible to measure scientifically, reducing the reliability of the findings further.
MYTH: Fizzy water gives you wrinkles 
Bollywood A-Lister Shilpa Shetty steers clear of carbonated water, saying that it causes wrinkles on the face.
However, there’s no evidence to suggest that this is true – if the water contains the same components still and sparkling, why would one type give you wrinkles?
It’s important to stay hydrated if you want to maintain a healthy weight – keeping your body topped up with fluids can help curb hunger and give you glowing, dewy skin.
And wrinkles? Stay out of the sun, stay hydrated and eat a diet rich in fruit and vegetables, and you’ll be doing everything you can to ward off the signs of ageing!
MYTH: Meat sits in your digestive system for 40 years
Dancing On Ice star Heather Mills preached her vegan lifestyle to the press (remember the rat milk fiasco?), but scientists have de-bunked her latest outbursts about meat.
There’s a common belief among vegans that meat, which is not as readily digested in the stomach as vegetables and carbohydrates, sits in the colon as it cannot be digested.
Heather went as far to say that meat stayed in the colon for a whopping 40 years – something that any biology textbook will set straight.
Anything that the stomach can’t use for nutrients is just eliminated from the body – that’s what your digestive system is for, after all!