Opinion - News Analysis   

Celebrities' unscientific comments debunked

James Randerson

Scientists hope to steer celebrities away from making pseudo-scientific gaffes.

FROM MADONNA'S efforts to find a way to "neutralise radiation" to Carol Caplin's advice on keeping "your lymph system unclogged" if you want to avoid breast cancer, celebrities are seldom shy about offering scientific-sounding health tips.

But with the season for promoting New Year diets and health fads in full swing, a group of U.K. scientists is hoping to steer the rich and famous away from making pseudo-scientific gaffes.

The charity "Sense About Science," has assembled the wisdom of 16 leading researchers in a handy leaflet it hopes will become a must-read for celebrities.

Tracey Brown, director of the charity, said: "All year long people send us frustrating examples of celebrities promoting something that makes no sense. Once it's done, it's really difficult to undo. We know some people aren't interested in good science or evidence. We are equally sure some will be glad to talk through claims they are asked to front, because they take their public impact seriously, or just for their own self-preservation."

The leaflet, entitled Need to Speak to a Scientist, includes numerous examples of quackery and pseudo-scientific nonsense attributed to celebrities.

Madonna was quoted in August as saying she had been working with scientists to find a way to "neutralise radiation." Nick Evans, an environmental radiochemist at Loughborough University, said: "Radioactivity cannot be neutralised, it can only be moved from one place to another until it decays away at its own rate. There are no magical solutions."

The Sense About Science study cites actor Juliette Stevenson, who gave her views about the MMR vaccine to a newspaper, as saying: "I was alarmed at the idea of three diseases being injected into her system in one go. I thought, bloody hell, that's an awful lot for this tiny thing."

Adam Finn, a paediatrician at the University of Bristol, said: "The worst fallacies are ones that sound as if they ought to be true — but sometimes common sense is nonsense.

"Even tiny babies' immune systems handle many new infections at once, no problem. The best advice is, avoid needless risk by protecting children with full, prompt immunisation."

Actor Joanna Lumley is quoted on a vegan website, making a link between cancer and diet, and saying: "We cannot go on force-feeding animals chemicals and growth stimulants the way we are. Why do you think cancer is roaring ahead at the moment?"

John Toy, medical director of Cancer Research UK, said: "Cancer is not `roaring ahead.' It is more common mostly because people are living longer. It is essential that `cancer causing' claims are based only on scientifically proven facts, not scare-mongering."

The WWF campaign entitled "I'm a celebrity ... get it out of me" also came in for criticism. The conservation charity measured levels of various chemicals in the blood of celebrities to illustrate the supposed dangers of chemicals our bodies pick up each day.

"A whole host of unwanted chemicals find their way into our bodies all the time," said John Hoskins, a toxicologist. "Most leave quickly but some stay — asbestos and silica in our lungs, dioxins in our blood. Do they matter? No! The most important thing is dose. One aspirin cures a headache, a hundred kills."

"Sense About Science" has distributed the leaflet to VIP hangouts such as Premiership football clubs, exclusive restaurants, and clubs.

Simon Singh, the science author and trustee of Sense About Science, said celebrities could have a huge impact on public opinion and should seek advice before pronouncing on science. "Celebrities can have a huge influence on the public, but they need to make sure they are doing more good than harm, by checking their facts."

— © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2006

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

Booming, but weaknesses persist
Testing times for Somalia
Links between a nation's past and future
Corrections and Clarifications
Revisiting the Raj, warts and all
Why did the Arab world remain silent?
Celebrities' unscientific comments debunked
Gruesome killings
Saddam's execution

Copyright © 2007, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu