Celebrities do weird things. Mariah Carey eats a lot of purple food: plums, grapes, purple cabbage and eggplant. J.Lo sniffs grapefruit oil to kill her appetite. Sarah Michelle Gellar eats nothing but cabbage soup for seven days at a time.
Is there something to it? Do these hot shot celebrities have access to some special information we normals don’t? Or are they just as confused about health as the rest of us, falling for the latest crazy fads, only slightly ahead of schedule? Let’s take a look.
The Vitamin IV Drip
Famous followers: Rihanna and Simon Cowell
What is it? A cocktail of vitamins and minerals is fed intravenously for a period of anywhere from 30 minutes to three hours. Used to treat everyday problems like stress, depression, headaches, fatigue and allergies, the vitamin IV drip also has some slightly more serious sounding uses, like treating pain caused by fibromyalgia and improving nutrient absorption in seniors.
The popular ‘Myers’ Cocktail’ is a mixture of vitamins B + C, calcium and trace mineral selenium. Celebrities, high-powered executives and wealthy New York moms claim it makes you feel “like a machine.” In Las Vegas, the ‘Hangover Heaven’ bus drives around the city offering hangover relief to ailing partygoers.
How is it different from just taking a bunch of vitamins? The body can only absorb about 15 percent of the vitamins in off-the-shelf pills. Absorption is proclaimed to be much higher with the drip.
Why the controversy? Some say there’s a shortage of vitamins in the world, and that we should save what we have for those who really need it, like the very young and the very old. Also, there’s little evidence to show the vitamin IV drip actually works. Some doctors have suggested that the benefits are merely a placebo effect. Lastly, it’s been reported than some models and celebrities use an IV drip to give their bodies the proper nutrients without eating.
Cupping
Famous followers: Jennifer Aniston
What is it? Cupping is an ancient technique that uses glass, bamboo or earthenware cup to mobilize blood flow. A flammable substance, alcohol, for example, is put in the cup and set on fire. When the fire goes out the cup is placed on the skin. As the cup cools, it creates a vacuum, forcing blood to the surface.
Though this technique dates have to the Egyptians in 1550 B.C., it’s been improved upon over the centuries. The modern version of this technique uses a pump with silicon cups. With ‘wet cupping’, the doctor takes a small scalpel to make surface incisions and the pump is place to top to suck out a small amount of blood. This is believed to remove toxins and promote healing, sort of like bloodletting. The wound takes about 10 days to heal.
Why the controversy? Though this method is used to treat high blood pressure, skin disorders, anxiety and depression, bronchial congestion, migraine, improve fertility and much more, there’s no scientific evidence to show that it actually works. The American Cancer society has come out against it, though another study showed that, when combined with acupuncture or other medications, it has some effect in the treatment of herpes, acne and facial paralysis.
The Grapefruit Diet
Famous followers: Brooke Sheilds
What is it? This 12-day detox promises a 10-pound weight loss by using the enzymes in grapefruits to burn large amounts of stored fat.
Half a grapefruit is consumed before each meal. Meals consist entirely of protein and vegetables, including all types of meat and fish. Black coffee is allowed at breakfast, and no restrictions are placed on butter and salad dressing. Eight glasses of water are also recommended.
Typically, a person on the grapefruit diet consumes between 800 and 1000 calories a day. Absolutely no carbohydrates are allowed.
Why the controversy? Significantly less stressful on the body than the Master Cleanse (the famous maple syrup, lemon juice and cayenne ‘fast’), the grapefruit diet actually allows a dieter to consume many of the nutrients the body needs.
Considering that one pound of food equals 3,000 calories, it would be impossible to burn 10 pounds of fat in just 12 days with no exercise, especially on a diet where one is allowed to consume unlimited quantities of meat. Weight loss on this diet is mostly water weight. Without learning the basic principles of eating right, a person on the grapefruit diet is likely doomed to gain that weight back.
Interestingly, though grapefruit is high in vitamin C and fibre, the miracle enzyme alleged to burn fat is nowhere in scientific evidence.
Dried Placenta Pills
Famous followers: January Jones
What is it? If you can get beyond the gross-out factor, placenta encapsulation is actually a powerful and sacred technique. An ancient practice in traditional Chinese medicine, consuming placenta is like drinking from the fountain of youth. The placenta is recovered, dried and placed in empty vegetable capsules, for later consumption. It’s proven to have numerous health benefits for new mothers, reducing post-birth bleeding, improving milk production, and replenishing hormones and essential nutrients.
Why the controversy? For one thing, there’s the ick factor, but that’s probably just Western sensitivity. Beyond that, there’s the obvious: placenta isn’t easy to come by. Short of consuming their own placenta after birth, there’s the question of where our celebrity friends are acquiring all that placenta, and what might happen if the trend catches on. (In most parts of the world, you aren’t allowed to sell parts of your own body.)
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