Nicole Kidman: Criticised for promoting a computer brain workout programme
Posted on 01/02/2008 11:07:25 PM PST by Stoat
Nicole Kidman: Criticised for promoting a computer brain workout programme
When your name's Nicole Kidman or Gwyneth Paltrow, everyone wants to hear what you have to say.
But before holding forth on their favourite remedy, celebrities should get their facts straight, experts say.
The two Hollywood actresses, along with the TV presenter Gillian McKeith and fashion designer Stella McCartney, are singled out by a charity founded to increase the public's understanding of scientific issues.
Sense About Science warned: "A small group of people in the public eye promote pseudo-science without embarrassment and cannot be dissuaded from it."
Alice Tuff, who helped compile the list of celebrity pseudo- science, said: "Celebrity lifestyles and comments have a lot of social weight. Once in the public domain, it's almost impossible for, say, a toxicologist to eclipse a Stella McCartney or a Gwyneth Paltrow in order to give the public the facts. So the pressure must be there to get it right in the first place."
Miss Kidman, who appears in the Christmas blockbuster the Golden Compass, is criticised for promoting Nintendo's computer-based mental workout programme Dr Kawashima's Brain Training.
Endorsing the game, the 40-year-old star said: "I've quickly found that training my brain is a great way to keep my mind feeling young."
However, scientists say there is scant evidence for her claim.
Dr Jason Braithwaite, a cognitive neuroscientist at Birmingham University, said: "There is no conclusive evidence showing that the continued use of these devices is linked to any measurable changes and general improvements in cognition."
Meanwhile, Gwyneth Paltrow has been singled out for her lack of knowledge of the genetics of cancer.
The actress, known to follow a wholegrain-rich, meat and caffeine-free macrobiotic diet, said recently: "I am convinced that by eating biological foods it is possible to avoid tumours."
But Professor Tim Hunt, of charity Cancer Research UK, said: "There is little evidence to implicate particular diets or particular foods with increased risk of cancer."
Also under the microscope is nutritionist Gillian McKeith. Referring to obesity among children, the presenter of Channel 4's You Are What You Eat, said: "If a quarter of kids are overweight now, then when they grow up and have kids, half of them will be overweight.
"And then if they have kids, everybody will be overweight."
But John Garrow, emeritus professor of medicine at the University of London, said: "Obesity is not mainly genetically determined, although it does 'run in families' because families share a similar environment.'
Stella McCartney is criticised for a magazine interview in which she said a chemical found in many skin creams is also found in anti-freeze. Scientists said the chemical, propylene glycol, is versatile and its use in cosmetics is not "scary".
Not all celebrities fared badly. The chef Jamie Oliver and the illusionist Derren Brown were praised for their responsible attitude to science.
ROTFLOL. Good one
I apologize for my double post...I’m having some connectivity “issues” with the stoatputer at the moment.
The Kidman quote is harmless. Her real crime is becoming a blonde.
That makes sense.
Maybe she’s turning “gray”?
I see what you mean. It is a riot. Thanks for pointing it out.
Why anyone would listen to a celeb when we have actual marine biologists out there is beyond me!
“I am convinced that by eating biological foods it is possible to avoid tumours.”
Do some people actually live on non-biological food? Or is Gwyneth Paltrow a blonde? Or maybe she knows some sulfate reducing bacteria with tumors.
Marine biologist AND architect. Let’s be accurate about false identities. It gets the babes.
Ah, well, you should run a search for “Will Smith Hitler Comment” on a search engine. He seems to think Hitler really was, well, well-intentioned, but twisted. It follows the “everybody is basically good” mantra, which probably excludes only conservatives, Condi Rice, George Bush, Rush, and a handful of others. Beyond that, everyone is basically good, according to Will Smith. Please stick with nursing, you do more good than these folks. Happy New Year.
Action Video Games Sharpen Vision 20 Percent
Both of these stories are in Science Daily, a respectable site (except on the subject of GW; only pro-GW evidence is presented).
Most people recall that the pretty boys and girls in school who were brainless academic failures, sometimes found their sole avenue of achievement in acting.
Why should we pay even the slightest attention to people we all know from personal experience to be functionally retarded?
Notice trhe scientiest doesn't say there is "no evidence". I do think diet can affect the incidence of cancer particularly colon cancer.
“Notice trhe scientiest doesn’t say there is “no evidence”. I do think diet can affect the incidence of cancer particularly colon cancer.”
I agree. Many, many years ago a doctor told me that the worst thing that I could do for my body was to eat red meat. I wasn’t much of a meat eater so I tapered off to the point of stopping altogether. Now some medical studies also see a correlation so I guess there might have been some truth in his warning to me.
Anyone who claims that Golden Compass was a blockbuster is an idiot.
“...studies have shown that dementia is less likely in people who maintain an active mental life...”
It’s called reading and engaging in meaningful conversation. Few people know how to do that anymore, it appears.
Marine biologist AND architect. Let’s be accurate about false identities. It gets the babes.
Did we not leave out......VanDalay Latex salesman!
The Hollywood stars are for the most part uneducated dolts. The problem is that the MSM gives them credence as if they were brilliant scientists.
Is that a Titleist?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.