2011

Scientists Correct the Misstatements of the Stars Scientists Correct the Misstatements of the Stars
The American Council on Science and Health Presents:
2011
Nutrition
Gwyneth Paltrow vs. Bruce Chassy, Ph.D.
Biotechnology and Nutrition Scientist,
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne
Vaccines
Bill Maher vs. Paul Offit, M.D.
Chemicals
Nicholas Kristoff vs. Kathryn Kelly, D.Ph.
Mehmet Oz, M.D. and Sanjay Gupta, M.D.
vs. Rudolph Jaeger, Ph.D.
Cosmetics
Fran Drescher vs. Larry Wickerham, M.D.
Nutrition
Gwyneth Paltrow vs. Bruce Chassy, Ph.D.
Elisabeth Hasselbeck vs. Judith Stern, Sc.D., R.D
Cancer
Suzanne Somers vs. Michael Simon, M.D.
Supplements
Kevin Costner vs. Bruce Chassy, Ph.D.
Celebrities Vs. Science
Celebrities Vs. Science
We value movie stars and musicians for their entertainment
value, not their scientific expertise. But when they weigh in
on important issues pertaining to human health and get
things wrong, it is important to set the record straight.
Scientists affiliated with the American Council on Science
and Health (see acsh.org and healthfactsandfears.com) do
just that. Below they respond to one celebrity doozy of a
comment at a time.
* The inspiration for this ACSH publication was Science for Celebrities, a publication by the UK organization
Sense About Science.
Vaccines: Bill Maher Versus Dr. Paul Offit
nelLher Lhe seasonal u vacclne nor Lhe swlne u vacclnes are
equlvalenL Lo "sucklng a dlsease lnLo your arm." 8oLh
preparauons are made uslng kllled vlrus. 1herefore, Lhe vacclne
sLralns cannoL posslbly reproduce Lhemselves and cause dlsease.
Maher's warnlng agalnsL swlne u vacclne, whlch he made on
CcLober 2nd, 2009, was awful medlcal advlce. uurlng Lhe nexL
several monLhs, swlne u lnfecLed abouL 47 mllllon Amerlcans,
causlng abouL 230,000 Lo be hosplLallzed and 12,000 Lo dle,
lncludlng 1,200 chlldren. 1he number of chlldren who dled from
lnuenza ln 2009 was Len umes greaLer Lhan LhaL found durlng a
Lyplcal u season.
au| Cmt, MD, Ch|ef, D|v|s|on of Infecnous D|seases,
Ch||dren's nosp|ta| of h||ade|ph|a, author of !"#$%&
'()*+",- /)0 1(" 23456#++*3" 7)8"9"3: 1(;"#:"3,
<, 2%%
8||| Maher, Comed|an, 1e|ev|s|on
nost
wby woolJ yoo let jtbe
qovetomeot] . suck o Jlseose
loto yoot otm? l woolJ oevet
qet o swloe fo voccloe ot ooy
voccloe. l Joot ttost tbe
qovetomeot, especlolly wltb my
beoltb.
6,=

"
Prenatal Environmental Chemical Exposure:
Nicholas Kristoff Versus Dr. Kathryn Kelly
Whlle a laudable goal,
unforLunaLely Lhe only way Lo
slgnlcanLly reduce a pregnanL
woman's exposure Lo Loxlns ls
Lo sLarve her. We are exposed
Lo Loxlns largely Lhrough eaung
Lhem, and as ur. 8ruce Ames
lnformed us over Lwo decades
ago, more Lhan 99.9 of
Lhe chemlcals humans eaL are
naLural, and half of Lhose
sLudled are carclnogens. 1ens
of Lhousands of Lhese Loxlns
are presenL naLurally as a parL
of Lhe planL's defense sysLem,
and always have been. As ur.
Ames polnLed ouL, naLural pesuclde carclnogens have been shown
Lo be presenL ln everyLhlng from bananas, basll, broccoll, and
8russels sprouLs Lo parsley, parsnlps, peaches, and black pepper -
meanlng almosL every planL producL ln Lhe supermarkeL
recommended for a good dleL conLalns naLural carclnogens. We
could ellmlnaLe every synLheuc chemlcal on Lhe planeL and have
vlrLually zero lmpacL on our overall exposure Lo LoxlcanLs. WhaL's a
pregnanL woman Lo do? LaL Lhe healLhy foods her docLor
recommends, naLural carclnogens and all. Aer all, mosL of us
readlng Lhls were born under slmllar condluons of exposure Lo
moLhers who drank orange [ulce and coee, munched on apples
and carroLs, and en[oyed raspberrles and plneapples, all of whlch
also conLaln naLural carclnogens. regnancy ls sLressful enough
wlLhouL scarlng women unnecessarlly.
we sboolJ be mocb
mote cotefol oboot
exposloq pteqooot
womeo to toxlos, ooJ
mocb polcket to
teqolote cbemlcols
tbot ote oow wlJely
oseJ eveo tbooqb
tbeyve oevet eveo
beeo testeJ fot
sofety.o otetos ls
oot o Jlvloq bell tbot
losolotes lts occopoot
ftom tbe wotlJs
petlls. AoJ lts oow
blqb ume to toke o
closet look ot
ooteqoloteJ
cbemlcols tbot
eovelop os - ooJ
moy be sboploq oot
ptoqeoy fot JecoJes
to come.
N|cho|as kr|stof, >"0 ?);@ 1*9", ed|tor|a|
wr|ter
kathryn ke||y, Dr..n., tox|co|og|st

"
Vs.
Chemicals: Dr. Oz & Dr. Sanjay Gupta Versus Dr. Rudolph Jaeger
Toxic pollution runs
throughout our food supply
through the earth's most
precious resource, the
food we eat. Mercury,
pesticides, and more are a
few of the toxins that
wreak havoc on our bodies
and now contaminate our
food supply. The good
news: you can still eat the
food you love and reduce
your exposure to the
deadly forces, but only if
you know the secrets to
detox your family's food
supply.
Mehmet Cz, M.D., surgeon, 1V host
WhaL a markeung eorL. WhaL ls he
Lrylng Lo sell? Maybe lL ls LlsLen Lo me
because l know Lhe 'SecreL.''' Manure,
ls whaL my grandfaLher puL on Lhe
poLaLoes LhaL 0" aLe. now LhaL's
organlc! 8u1 l1 WAS Cu8 CWn
MAnu8L! u(lLhe)r Cz puLs Lhe Lhe
same manure on your plaLe. Mercury
(naLural), pesucldes (less every year by
my counL) and 'more' (say whaL?) LlsL
Lhem all, u(lLhe)r Cz, and we can do
baule. We have more food of beuer
quallLy Lhan ever before. Cz mlsses Lhe
polnL. We eaL Loo much of lL. 1(#:A, Lhe
problem.
kudo|ph Iaeger, h.D.,
tox|co|og|st
All subsLances have a poLenual Lo cause harm aL some
concenLrauon for some ume aL some sLage ln one's llfe.
1o scare and lname parenLs by saylng 'Lhe Lesung has
noL been done' ls llke yelllng re ln a crowded LheaLer.
WhaL Lesung would be adequaLe Lo Lrump such an
absurd asseruon? none LhaL l know and even Lhen, Lhe
'CesundhelL ollzel' wlll call for sLrlcLer measures due Lo
fear, albelL lll placed. 8ad Lhlngs happen Lo good people
who eaL rlghL, geL enough exerclse and pracuce
moderauon ln mosL Lhlngs. 1o say we need more Lesung
begs Lhe quesuon: WhaL Lo LesL and how Lo lnLerpreL Lhe
resulLs. As Lo lnslde alr belng more polluLed Lhan ouLslde,
ask hlm whaL Loxlc gases are found ln aLulence
(meLhane, hydrogen sulde, eLc). Lven chlldren break
wlnd! 1hey may be Lhe polluLers. nexL we wlll geL calls
for underwear wlLh charcoal lLers.
San[ay Gupta, M.D., CNN med|ca| reporter
lor a year now, as Cnn lnvesugaLed Loxlc chemlcals, [usL abouL
everyone we Lalked Lo sald, look, Lhey're probably safe, a llule blL ls
noL golng Lo hurL you, or, we [usL don'L know. 8uL LhaL lsn'L good
enough. nobody can glve parenLs any assurance LhaL Lhe chemlcals
Lurnlng up ln our chlldren's bodles are reasonably safe because Lhe
Lesung has noL been done..1ake o your shoes by Lhe fronL
door.Lo reduce Lracklng poLenually harmful chemlcals all
LhroughouL your home. keeplng Lhese Loxlc chemlcals ouL of Lhe
house ls especlally lmporLanL for famllles wlLh bables and Loddlers.
1hey spend a loL of ume on Lhe oor. lndoor alr ls Lwo Lo ve umes
more polluLed Lhan Lhe alr ouLslde. So open Lhe wlndows. Allow for
plenLy of venulauon. 1he lnLerplay beLween Loxlc subsLances, Lhe
envlronmenL and your healLh, lL's someLhlng we're golng Lo be
forced Lo deal wlLh for Lhe resL of our llves. Lvery day, we're golng Lo
learn someLhlng new, someLhlng lmporLanL.
6,= 6,=

"

"
Cosmetics Chemicals: Fran Drescher
Versus F. Larry Wickerham, M.D.
Iran Drescher, actress, comed|an
womeo ote
scbmeotloq sto[ oo
tbelt Jcollet,
wooJetloq wby we'te
oll qemoq bteost
coocet. Ooce yoo woke
op ooJ smell tbe
co[ee, lt's botJ to qo
bock to sleep. 5o l'm
soooJloq tbe olotm. l
coolJo't posslbly sell
sometbloq tbot woso't
qooJ fot me. let's qet
cotclooqeos oot of oot
Jolly llves.
6,=
Ms. urescher ls a cancer
survlvor and her advlce Lo
avold carclnogens ls
reasonable, buL
"schmearlng" cosmeucs of
any Lype on Lhe neckllne,
enure breasL or elsewhere
ls noL known Lo lncrease
breasL cancer rlsk.
osLmenopausal obeslLy ls
a well esLabllshed rlsk
facLor for Lhe dlsease so
"schmearlng" less cream
cheese on bagels would be
even beuer advlce.
Larry W|ckerham, MD, Assoc|ate Cha|rman, Nanona|
Surg|ca| Ad[uvant 8reast and 8owe| ro[ect

"
Diet: Gwyneth Paltrow Versus Dr. Bruce
Chassy
Gwyneth a|trow, actress,
descr|b|ng the ka|e & nut based
d|et she used to prepare for her
ro|e |n B;)3 7#3 C
"

1he D#$ dleLs consumed by celebrlues

are a conunual source of amusemenL.
1hey may belleve ln Lhe dleLs buL Lhe
problem ls LhaL Lhere are no sllver
bulleLs when lL comes Lo nuLrluon.
WhaL counLs ls Lhe composluon of
your dleL: Lhe rlghL proporuons of
Lhlngs llke faLs, carbohydraLes, ber,
proLelns and essenual mlcronuLrlenLs.
lL's for sure LhaL some dleLs are
healLhler Lhan oLhers, buL dleLs LhaL
rely on exaggeraLed quanuues of one
or Lwo foods (llke nuLs and kale) oen
aren'L even balanced dleLs. AL besL
Lhey do llule Lo help, aL worsL Lhey
don'L provlde essenual nuLrlenLs. Why
do Lhey work for Lhe sLars? robably
because sLars work hard aL gemng
lnLo and sLaylng ln Lop physlcal shape
ln order Lo meeL Lhelr demandlng
llfesLyles. 1hey may Lhlnk lL's Lhe dleL
buL lL's really Lhelr lncredlble
mouvauon and wllllngness Lo work
hard - LhaL's whaL lL Lakes Lo be a
sLar.
8ruce Chassy, h.D., rofessor of food
m|crob|o|ogy, Un|vers|ty of I|||no|s at
Urbana-Champagne
6,=
1bls teqlme qot me lo tbe
best sbope of my llfe ooJ l
coouooe to tetoto to lt
wbeo l bove o speclfc eveot
so tbot l coo Jo tlJlcoloos
tbloqs llke be o J7 yeot olJ
motbet of two ooJ weot
sbotts...l wotkjeJ] oot slx
Joys o week. wbeo yoo'te
jmy oqe], yoo eltbet stotve
yootself, yoo Jo setloos
cotJlo. 1bete's oo ftee tlJe.
Nutrition: Elisabeth Hasselbeck Versus
Judith Stern, Sc.D., R.D.
eople wlLh cellac dlsease beneL from
a gluLen-free dleL. Cellac dlsease ls an
auLolmmune dlsease where people have
anubodles Lo gluLen, and Lhls oen
damages Lhe small lnLesunal llnlng. 8uL
Lhe advlce LhaL all people beneL from a
gluLen-free dleL ls [usL baloney!" 1he
laLe Amerlcan asLronomer and sclence
popularlzer Carl Sagan had a 8aloney
ueLecuon klL. Cne suggesLed Lool was:
Wherever posslble Lhere musL be
lndependenL conrmauon of Lhe facLs."
1here are no sclenuc facLs abouL Lhe
beneLs of a gluLen-free dleL for
everyone. 1here ls noL a growlng body
of evldence LhaL lL can lead Lo welghL
loss and lncreased energy" or a
LreaLmenL reglmen for auusm. 8esldes lL
goes agalnsL my baslc manLras, uon'L
belleve all Lhe advlce LhaL you geL from
celebrlues" and uon'L eaL bad Lasung
foods."
Iud|th Stern, Sc.D., k.D., rofessor of Nutr|non,
Un|vers|ty of Ca||forn|a - Dav|s
j1bete ote]
mytloJ
beoefts tbot
ooyooe coo
eojoy ftom o
qloteo-ftee
Jlet. ftom
welqbt loss
ooJ locteoseJ
eoetqy to
eveo tbe
ollevlouoo of
tbe cooJluoos
of oousm.
L||sabeth nasse|beck,
1(" 6*"0 co-host, former EF;8*8);
contestant
6,=
"

Cancer: Suzanne Somers Versus Dr. Michael Simon

Suzanne Somers, actress,
acnv|st, author
vetyooe koows tbe Jomoqloq
coosepoeoces of cbemo (wbot l coll
polsoo tbetopy).wbot ls ctozlet tboo
pomploq o boJy foll of polsoo? AoJ
tbeo tbetes osoolly slx weeks of
toJlouoo. 8ot wolt.lsot lt toJlouoo
tbot qlves os coocet?
Modern cancer Lherapy saves llves and resulLs ln Lhe ever-
lncreaslng numbers of world-wlde cancer survlvors LhaL we see
Loday. As cancer speclallsLs, we supporL Lhe [udlclous and
careful use of sLaLe of Lhe arL cancer Lherapy. AdvancemenLs ln
LargeLed Lheraples for cancer lnclude lmprovemenLs ln
LreaLmenLs LhaL klll cancer cells and spare Lhe good cells. 1he
hollsuc approach Lo cancer care provldes Lhe beneLs of cancer
experLs and medlcal Leams worklng closely wlLh each pauenL,
so LhaL all aspecLs of Lhelr cancer care are managed (mlnd,
body and splrlL) Lo promoLe successful LreaLmenL resulLs and
opumal quallLy of llfe.
M|chae| S|mon, M.D., rofessor of Cnco|ogy
and Med|c|ne, 8arbara Ann karmanos Cancer
Insntute and Department of Cnco|ogy,
Wayne State Un|vers|ty Schoo| of Med|c|ne
6,=
"

Supplements: Kevin Costner Versus

Bruce Chassy, Ph.D.
The FTC case against Airborne
illustrates how the dietary
supplement industry exploits
consumer's belief that if a little of a
natural product is good for you, then
a lot must be better. In this case,
there is absolutely no scientific
evidence that Airborne would be
health-beneficial and a lot of reason
to believe it could even be
dangerous. But because of its "all
natural and green image"
coupled with a powerful force called
the placebo effect the product
inspired thousands to believe it
worked. It is ironic that consumers
want to avoid even infinitesimal
amounts of man-made chemicals
while they are willing to overdose on
anything natural. It would be nice if
things were so simple. Some of the
most useful chemicals in the world
are man-made (for example
hundreds of life-saving
pharmaceuticals) while some of the
most toxic chemicals in the world
were designed and produced by
good old mother nature (strychnine
and botulism toxin are examples).
Look, Alrborne ls
greaL. l wouldn'L
go on a movle seL
wlLhouL lL, lL's on
my plane and ln
my house.
kev|n Costner, actor,
endors|ng herba|]v|tam|n
co|d remedy A|rborne
8ruce Chassy, h.D., b|otechno|ogy and
nutr|non sc|ennst, Un|vers|ty of I|||no|s
at Urbana-Champagne
"
6,=