…and this is a 
So don't call her Dr McKeith. She hasn't earned it. Also, it irks her something fierce when you question her title.
If you're an American, you have something you can take real pride in: you've probably never heard of Gillian McKeith. I hadn't. Apparently, she's a prominent woo-peddler in the UK, with her face and various encomiums plastered on magic chlorophyll pills and dong-distenders and ingredients for superfoods that will make your hair grow and your liver do backflips. She also writes popular books that make outrageously silly claims about medicine and science. She also claims to have a Ph.D., a bit of fraud that she was told to stop making because it is a lie — she seems to have bought some pieces of paper from quacky diploma mills.
If you contact the Australasian College of Health Sciences (Portland, US) where McKeith has a "pending diploma in herbal medicine", they say they can't tell you anything about their students. When you contact Clayton College of Natural Health to ask where you can read her PhD, they say you can't. What kind of organisations are these? If I said I had a PhD from Cambridge, US or UK (I have neither), it would only take you a day to find it.
She's one of the citizens of the evil empire we bravely and patriotically broke free of 221 years ago (good thing, too — I hear their queen is a baby-eating reptoid). We don't have to worry too much about her here in the ex-colonies. Note, though, where she got her fake degrees: here in the USA. That contributes to a recent twist.
Rachel Moody made a casual comment about McKeith not having a Ph.D. on Twitter, which really annoyed the quack. She fired back, and what's weird is she is now arguing that questioning her degree is a sign of anti-Americanism. Say what? I didn't know all the foreigners were also expected to be patriotic pro-Americans! This will make Glenn Beck so happy.
So you believe if you tell a lie enough times it becomes fact. It doesn't honey! Your anti-American bigotry is too glaring. gx
6:43 PM Jul 8th via web in reply to rachelemoody
Miss Anti-American: How sad a life to enjoy reading lies about another by an ass who makes money from pharmaceutical giants
6:22 PM Jul 8th via web in reply to rachelemoody
Sad thing Rachel that your excitement comes from negativity. Think about it. U can shift yourself when you decide
5:57 PM Jul 8th via web in reply to rachelemoody
Is it that you don't like my Doctorate (PhD) because it's from America and you're discriminatory? USA knows how to educate too
5:56 PM Jul 8th via web in reply to rachelemoody
I'm a little creeped out. It's annoying enough when our pundits wrap themselves in the American flag and announce their loyalty, but really…a citizen of the UK groveling over a colonial affiliation? Don't they take people like that out and have them keelhauled or put in stocks or flogged around the fleet anymore?
I would agree with McKeith that the US does have very good universities where you can get a good doctorate-level education. McKeith did not attend any of them. Also, for every Stanford and Harvard we have our share of diploma mills and fake, unaccredited pseudo-universities. Case in point: Kent Hovind, creationist jailbird, has a "Ph.D." from Patriot "University", a ranch-style house and fundamentalist church in Colorado. If McKeith would like to add to her woo credentials, she could also pick up a degree in astrology from Kepler College.
We are a nation rich in crackpots. Just saying your degree was bought in America is not a guarantee of quality.
Comments
Posted by: First Approximation, L'esprit de l'escalier
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July 12, 2010 11:07 AM
"Hello, my name is
Kent HovindGillian McKeith."Posted by: blf
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July 12, 2010 11:09 AM
Oh feck. The fecking poo lady is fecking back!? Fsmsdamnit, somebody hold her fecking head in the fecking toilet she fecks so much and fecking flush it fecking repeatedly. Please!
Posted by: LinzeeBinzee
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July 12, 2010 11:11 AM
I think I've seen this woman's show...is she the one that makes people poop into tupperware?
Why do quacks feel the need to call themselves doctors when they spend a lot of time dismissing science, research, and "Western" medicine? Shouldn't they want to distance themselves from the evil doctors that are paid off by Big Pharma?
Posted by: Walton, Marquis of Carabas
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July 12, 2010 11:14 AM
Gillian McKeith is infamous over here for her woo-ish nutrition advice, and for making tacky nutrition TV programmes in which, essentially, she goes into the homes of overweight people and shouts at them about their diets.
Her understanding of science is very limited. As Ben Goldacre highlighted (he devoted an entire chapter in Bad Science to her), she has been known to tell people to eat more green plants containing chlorophyll because it will "really oxygenate your blood". She has weird fixations with certain foods, and she also sells a range of supplements of dubious usefulness. She was banned by the relevant regulatory agency from selling her "Horny Goat Weed" pills, which she claimed (without any evidence) to be herbal aphrodisiacs.
She also has a bizarre obsession with bowel movements. :-/
Posted by: Ray Moscow
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July 12, 2010 11:17 AM
It's been a while since I've seen her on TV, but she sounded American.
I'm surprised to read that she grew up in Scotland.
Anyway, she's a quack. Ben Goldacre had her number long ago.
Posted by: nigelTheBold, Minister of Spankings
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July 12, 2010 11:18 AM
I think it's because it's so bloody obvious that well-educated people are more effective at intellectual endeavors than poorly-educated people.
The trick is to dismiss what makes education effective while simultaneously giving the illusion of education. This makes you seem intelligent, and endears you to those without an education. It plays into the distrust the less-educated have of the educated.
Posted by: Cepmk
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July 12, 2010 11:18 AM
This person has managed to get a disproportionate amount of air time in the UK until she was rumbled. It's all a matter of being faintly credible and preying upon people's insecurities. Without a real qualification recognized by a licensing authority it would seem not just to be woo but fraud. Or am I missing something?
Posted by: PZ Myers
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July 12, 2010 11:19 AM
She went to college here in the US, and is married to an American.
I'd like to know what's wrong with American publishers: Bad Science is still not available here in the US. One of the things I plan to do in London in the fall is hit up a bookstore and finally get a copy.
Posted by: Walton, Marquis of Carabas
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July 12, 2010 11:22 AM
She's not that kind of quack. She's the more dangerous kind, because, like many "nutrition therapists", she pretends to be a real scientist, and uses sciencey-sounding language and fake credentials to disguise the fact that she's peddling woo.
At least alt-med practitioners are generally candid about the fact that they reject "Western medicine". The dangerous thing about many "nutritionists" is that they act like they're doing actual regular science, dress up their woo in scientific terminology, and talk confidently about "studies", "findings" and "clinical trials", hoping that people won't fact-check their claims. And many people are taken in. Until the story broke about McKeith's fake credentials, a high proportion of the British public took her seriously, and she was making a fortune from TV shows, books and "supplements".
Posted by: nigelTheBold, Minister of Spankings
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July 12, 2010 11:22 AM
Isn't woo just a subset of fraud?
Posted by: Matt "Nora" Penfold
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July 12, 2010 11:28 AM
CampMK said:
She still has a show, now relegated to one of the less reliable satellite stations. And yes, she still has a thing about poo. Channel 4 dropped her when they found out she had lied about her credentials. They, like me, had assume she was either a medical doctor or had a Ph.D. is a relevant field.
Posted by: joleenkuyper
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July 12, 2010 11:29 AM
Dara O Briain has been ranting about her for years, and he does it so well. I never actually watched her shows but a lot of people sure did!
Posted by: vanharris
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July 12, 2010 11:30 AM
Sadly, in the case of her first-born, she wasn't into that kind of thing.
Posted by: Andrew Hall
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July 12, 2010 11:31 AM
Does this mean my degree from Glenn Beck's University isn't worth anything?
http://laughinginpurgatory.blogspot.com/2010/07/introducing-laughing-in-purgatory.html
Posted by: Cerberus, unnatural product of en-OMnomnom-ification
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July 12, 2010 11:31 AM
Walton @4
...
As compared to what?!?
Yes, you should always drink water containing H20. This advice means I are smart now, give me money!
And yeah, that bizarre defense of "why do you hate America" screams fraud to me. It also sounds like she's already got her backup plan in the bag. Once she's exposed in Britain (any day now), she'll be joining us her again in the jolly old USA...
Lucky us. More British con
menpeople. I mean, what's with the parade of British assholes? BP, Goldman Sachs, probably this lady soon?Posted by: vanharris
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July 12, 2010 11:32 AM
For those who don't know who her first born is, it's that Barmy Prince Charlie.
Posted by: bcstractor
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July 12, 2010 11:33 AM
That's nae a true Scotsman!
Please be careful about being rude about British expats. Your last king, King George, was no good example.
Chris P
Posted by: blf
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July 12, 2010 11:34 AM
Yes. She's known as TAPL (The Awful Poo Lady).
Posted by: Matt "Nora" Penfold
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July 12, 2010 11:35 AM
PZ,
No Need. Amazon UK are sending you a copy.
Posted by: blf
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July 12, 2010 11:40 AM
I still love Ben Goldacre's comment on that claim (in Pee Zed's linked-to article), which is worth quoting yet again:
Posted by: PZ Myers
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July 12, 2010 11:41 AM
Thanks very much!
Man, I ought to just post a link to my Amazon wish list and get more presents in the mail. (No, not really, packages already make the TrophyWife™ nervous.)
Posted by: Mr.Nerdz
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July 12, 2010 11:41 AM
What pretty much rumbled her for me was her going into a tirade about how fat someone would become because they ate... a slice of white bread. And yes, she is a basically a coprophile who has a habit of spouting it. As said above, she's been known as a fraud for years, it just seems that she's just having to deny it by playing the racism card (a different version of it, but still the racism card)
Posted by: bcstractor
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July 12, 2010 11:43 AM
Yes PZ - you too can order books from the great UK. Even Americans can log on to Amazon UK and get books sent to them. Amazon UK even allows the use of American Credit Cards. They even use the same logon as your USA account.
See - they're not as backward as you thought.
Chris
Posted by: Matt "Nora" Penfold
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July 12, 2010 11:44 AM
PZ,
The address I found for you was your office address.
Posted by: kanedeuce
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July 12, 2010 11:44 AM
PZ, you moron! It's not "reptoid"; it's "reptiloid".
Get it straight.
Posted by: Cerberus, unnatural product of en-OMnomnom-ification
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July 12, 2010 11:50 AM
blf @20
It's even more stupid because of the weird opening.
Okay, yeah, the oxygenated blood argument is a "too stupid to breathe" sort of bizarre claim and focus, but at least sounds like a very dumb person who quickly skimmed an introductory text on metabolism.
I think the "green plants" containing chlorophyll qualifier though is just an amazing piece of work. I mean first up, almost every, if not every plant contains chlorophyll, but certainly every green plant does. Chlorophyll is the only photosynthetic pigment in the green spectrum range. So say an orange plant may have a shit ton of carotene, but a green one is going to be chlorophyll by definition.
I mean, it would be stupid sounding if she just said "plants containing chlorophyll" or "eat greens, because chlorophyll engages woo receptor 5" or some such nonsense, but the "green plants containing chlorophyll" is the first clue you are talking to a definite rocket scientist before you even get to the bizarre oxygenated stuff.
It's obvious, "I know a word that sounds sciencey, I'll put it in here to sucker the rubes" and neatly foreshadows the repetition of inserting a word of the "that does not mean what you think it means" school later on in "oxygenating".
It's essentially the same thing as someone going "You should drink water with H20 to hydrogenate the blood. That sounded smart, right? Give me money!"
Posted by: Stephen_P
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July 12, 2010 11:54 AM
Red cabbage?
Posted by: Brownian, Most Vicious & Petty of Pharyngulites
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July 12, 2010 11:55 AM
So why are we drilling in the Gulf? If we could fuel locomotives with Egyptian mummies—and who but a bunch of skeptics are going to argue with Mark Twain about that?—imagine how many hummers we could cleanly drive to Walmart on a single qi-, orgone-, or Lemurian Warrior spirit-filled woo peddlar? Why, if we succussionate them enough, we could solve our energy crisis forever!
[An idea hits; adopts snake-oil salesman patter]:
Thus, I am pleased to share this amazing deal with my Pharyngulite friends: I am selling ampoules of my special Tincture of Accupuncturist for only $9.99 CAD (family-sized phials available for $14.99 CAD)! Even one drop of this energy-rich liquid added to your gas tank can improve your gas mileage by up to [mumble] percent! Apply some to your garden hose and watch your garden come to life! And speaking of hoses, who needs a little blue pill? One drop will untaint your taint and unlock your potential to please your soulmate for hours!
Where did I get the accupuncturists? That's The Secret®! Let's just say I used the Law of Attraction! All you need to know is that this deal is for a limited time only!
But Brownian, some of you are saying, How can this be true? My Skeptic friends say homeopathy and accupuncture don't work! Well, your skeptic "friends" are being paid by BP to cause autism so that...um...err...Look, I have PhDs in Healthometrics and Happinomics from the University College School of [mumble] and I'm channeling the spirit of Altantean Doctor-Shaman-Poet-Mailman...um...Klorblexi! Whichever qualification makes me more credible! You choose! Can your skeptic "friends" offer you such a choice? No! And that's why I've brought the power of homeopathy and acupuncture together at last! For $9.99! Buy now!
[Starts googling "Yachts for Sale"]
Posted by: Walton, Marquis of Carabas
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July 12, 2010 11:56 AM
Cerberus: The "green plants containing chlorophyll" thing was my paraphrase, not a direct quote from McKeith, so she can't be blamed for that. Though she does harp on a lot about the nutritional importance of the colour of plants.
Posted by: blf
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July 12, 2010 11:58 AM
Cerberus@26, I disagree the opening is stupid. It's redundant, but not wrong. The rest of it is not even wrong.
Posted by: James Sweet
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July 12, 2010 12:06 PM
Argh, I hate this style of argumentation so much. "You're disagreeing with me. That means you are being negative. We only want people with positivity!" Nevermind that the door swings both ways...
Posted by: Cerberus, unnatural product of en-OMnomnom-ification
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July 12, 2010 12:07 PM
Walton @29
Then I'll stop harping on that part. But yeah, the nutrition of colors and "oxygenated blood" don't scream PhD, but rather, "I skimmed an introductory biology book and saw "plants give more energy" in the circle of life chapter and "the oxygenating of the blood" in the respiration section and maybe the bit on respiration being central and metabolism and now "I are smart".
Posted by: amk.myopenid.com
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July 12, 2010 12:10 PM
This was quite common in the run up to the Iraq war, including from Blair. Don't support the Iraq war? Anti-American, and therefore Evil.Being anti-French of course has always been perfectly acceptable.
It seems that the British establishment has been so reliant on the "special relationship" with the US since WW2 (excepting Suez and Vietnam) that criticism of US foreign policy triggers their in-group bias.
Posted by: kieran
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July 12, 2010 12:15 PM
I view that dihydrogen monoxide is an extremely dangerous chemical when aspirated, in even small quantities, can cause death. Many so called homeopathic remedies contain large quantaties of this dangerous substance!
Her argument is that chlorophyl in the food would oxgenate the bowels. In otherwords the photosynthetic apparatus would survive intact through the stomach.
Evil poo lady that series is being shown on TV3 going to send a complaint in today.
Posted by: davem
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July 12, 2010 12:18 PM
I wrote a complaint to Channel 4 about her 'qualifications', and Channel 4's implicit endorsement of her fake PhD, by its use of the expression 'Dr' in front of her name. They dropped her soon afterwards. I'm sure that I wasn't the only one, but obviously it had some effect.
All her successes were as a result of proper diet and exercise(supervised by someone else), but she'd never state that plainly.
What really pisses me off is that the fraud made her a multi-millionaire.
Posted by: https://me.yahoo.com/hairychris444#96384
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July 12, 2010 12:23 PM
Silly bint.
It is fun to note, though, that she's had to go to the US to get a diploma-mill Phd because you can't get them here... Makes her ranting sound somewhat schizophrenic IMO.
Posted by: Matt "Nora" Penfold
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July 12, 2010 12:25 PM
Another reason Keith has proved so successful is that American husband of hers is a lawyer and knows his way around the British libel laws.
Unfortunately for him speaking the truth and being able to show you did so is a defence against those laws. Which is why Kieth can rant and rave all she likes but people can legitimately point out her Ph.D.. is bogus.
Posted by: Phodopus
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July 12, 2010 12:26 PM
I've got a degree in Homeopathic Medicine!
Posted by: Brownian, Most Vicious & Petty of Pharyngulites
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July 12, 2010 12:27 PM
My father's side of the family has a history of falling for this kind of crap: my aunt donated a shitload of money to the "School of Enlightenment" run by J. Z. Knight (as "Ramtha"), and I believe she and my dad are now in Brazil, fawning over João Teixeira de Faria ("João de Deus" or "John of God"). Any display of skepticism towards their latest get-rich/enlightened quick harebrainery was denounced as "negativity", which was a conversation-stopper.
Both my father and my aunt have made and lost fortunes as a result of this attitude. While it makes them excellent salespeople, they're easily manipulated by con artists: all someone has to do is tell them they can make bundle in a short time doing relatively nothing as long as they stay positive (and open their chequebooks).
Woomeisters, cult and religious leaders, and unethical businesspeople know how they need to forestall skepticism to keep their gravy trains running on time. Deriding skepticism as negativity and touting the power of positive thinking/faith has been a con's favourite tool for disarming a mark since "Do not test the Lord thy God" at least.
Posted by: Matt "Nora" Penfold
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July 12, 2010 12:27 PM
Well you can get them in the UK. It is just that it is a criminal offence her to claim you have a degree (First, Masters or Doctorate) from UK based institute unless that institute was accredited at the time the degree was awarded.
Posted by: Matt "Nora" Penfold
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July 12, 2010 12:32 PM
Someone tried that one me once. I rephrased my comment to "OK then. I am positive you are talking bollocks."
Posted by: Gregory Greenwood
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July 12, 2010 12:37 PM
Curses! How is it that you know that all us Brits are insidious lizard-people? How did you discover the best kept secret in the empire?
I know... its our terrible, false humanoid teeth, isn't it. They are skewed and mishapen by our attempts to fit them over our razor sharp reptilian fangs. I told the brood-queen that this was a fatal weakness in our plans, but as a male I am in danger of being eaten if I forget my place.
And after all the money we spent funding 'V' in order to acclimate you pathetic warm-bloods to your servitude to your new scaly overlords...
Well, the exposure of our nefarious plans always makes me hungry. I am off to the nearest neo-natal ward for a quick snack.
:-)
Posted by: Alice Bluegown
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July 12, 2010 12:43 PM
Ah, this brings back memories... Back when she was still proudly styling herself as "Doctor" Gillian McKeith, one of her diet books was brought home from the library by the Significant Other. I don't recall much about the contents, but there was a lot of nonsense about eating vast amounts of seaweed and, of course, checking your poop. I had only just begun lurking on sites like Pharyngula and Respectful Insolence, but when asked my opinion, I pronounced it the finest woo and seriously questioned "Dr" McKeith's medical credentials - it still feels good to have been right all this time.
Posted by: Maslab
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July 12, 2010 12:46 PM
Talking to yourself is either a sign of insanity or genius.Take a guess at which one it is in this case.
*smacks self for obvious and bad jab*
Posted by: Joe Bloe
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July 12, 2010 12:58 PM
Gillian McKeith calls herself a nutritonist which is not quite the same as dietitian:
http://www.nathalie-jones.co.uk/Anyone can call themselves a nutritionist, but the title is not worth a pinch of poop.
Posted by: Don1
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July 12, 2010 12:58 PM
Dara has her number.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLeMplo7RDs
Posted by: Susan Silberstein
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July 12, 2010 1:28 PM
#45, it is the same in the U.S. Anyone can call herself a nutritionist, but dietitian has a legal definition.
Posted by: Judy L.
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July 12, 2010 1:32 PM
I used to watch her UK programs, and was always struck by how much she loathed fat people and how much she enjoyed berating them. The people featured on her show did lose weight and improve their health, but by cutting out all the crappy food-like substances they ate too much of (including salt and alcohol) and instead eating real food in quantities that promote weight loss. But seriously, just celery juice for breakfast?
I thought that a lot of the dietary advice she gave was sound (don't eat crap, do eat real, whole foods, get some exercise) but when I researched more about her online a few years ago and discovered she was hawking bars made from goji berries and other supplements with her name and face on the packaging, I realized that she was just another "health guru" looking to make a buck. And on top of being a fraud and woo-spinner, she's a nasty, fat-phobic, bitchy woman with a pinched face and bad teeth who enjoys humiliating people and inspecting their bowel movements. I kept watching her shows in hope that one of her "fatties" would give her the boot to the head that she so sorely deserved.
Posted by: SEF
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July 12, 2010 1:41 PM
How about a homeopathic degree in medicine - viz a teeny tiny quantity of genuine knowledge diluted a zillion times in huge quantities of nonsense, bunkum and incomprehension. Hence being aware of the existence of chlorophyll but being utterly ignorant of its properties and the consequences of those.
Posted by: A. Noyd
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July 12, 2010 1:43 PM
James Sweet (#31)
Or being closed minded. I've been arguing the past couple days with someone who accused me of this, yet she didn't make a single attempt to change my mind. It was over some bullshit woo-tastic germ-theory-denying(-and-physics-mangling) panacea called Earthing. Check that out if you want a laugh.
Posted by: kyotokids
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July 12, 2010 1:52 PM
I've seen her shows both in the UK and the US on BBC America, she is so full of it and is the most annoying woman ever. Though the people she 'helps' do need to improve their diet, her new diets are such a massive change I can't believe anyone is actually able to continue with the new plan once she has gone for good.
She guesses at medical problems they might have and then sends them for a check up with a doctor, she isn't always right but knowing someones age, diet and symptoms anyone could guess pretty well with a limited knowledge, on top of that they can always edit the incorrect guesses out.
Pretty sure she'll be on you tube, to me the program has always been more aimed at prompting laughter and scorn at unfortunate people than actually educating anyone, its a body equivalent of How Clean is Your House (if you've seen it)
Posted by: Mark In Colorado
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July 12, 2010 2:08 PM
For 5 minutes hilarity, just google map the Australasian College of Health Sciences, 5940 Southwest Hood Avenue, Portland, then go to street view
The real question is, are the car parking spaces reserved for faculty, or can the students use them as well - perhaps they can borrow a space from the electrical wholesalers that shares the address?
Posted by: https://www.google.com/accounts/o8/id?id=AItOawmtgc02RSovp0o-2H2E7TYhL8RmP8W4iVc
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July 12, 2010 2:19 PM
Hey PZ, why do you have to slag off the whole of the UK? If Gillain McKeith is a quack, then of course feel free rip into the old gargoyle, but you're not winning any friends by attacking the Queen either.
However please feel free to have a merciless go at the future 'Emir' of the Dhimmi Champagne Islamist son of hers that is the (I would say 'bat-eared', but that would be an affront to my chiropteran friends) Prince of Wales.
Posted by: SprocketUK
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July 12, 2010 2:23 PM
McKeith still sells various pricey wholefoods in the UK under the brand "Food Doctor" prominently featuring her name and leering face.
Only in the small-print do you see that the Doctor in question is some shameless, but presumably qualified, partner.
Posted by: KG
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July 12, 2010 2:24 PM
Not only that, she is in the top echelon of the world illegal drug trade, and she seeks to liquidate the sovereignty of every nation state in the Americas!
Posted by: Walton, Marquis of Carabas
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July 12, 2010 2:26 PM
I don't think Professor Myers was seriously intending to insult either the Queen or the British people: the "evil empire" comment was clearly tongue-in-cheek, and I understood the "baby-eating reptoid" comment to be a humorous reference to the conspiracy theories of David Icke (who is known, inter alia, for his belief that the British Royal Family are part of a global conspiracy of reptilian aliens known as the Illuminati).
I could, of course, be wrong: but I've been around here a while, and Professor Myers has never shown any sign of being anti-British. (And I say this as an Englishman and a staunch monarchist.)
Posted by: SteveV, Death's Pissant Haberdasher
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July 12, 2010 2:35 PM
Of course not - that would be barbaric.
We could send them to the USA or Australia...
Wait.. Um.. Ummm
Havn't thought this 'barbaric' thing through..
I'll get back to you
Posted by: kiki
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July 12, 2010 2:37 PM
McKeith did give rise to one of the best newspaper headlines I've ever seen, in a story about how her PhD was indeed fake. The headline read simply, 'DR? NO'.
Admittedly it was in the vile Murdoch-owned rag The Sun, but as someone who occasionally has to write headlines that have to fit into very thin columns, I'm impressed when someone can get a pun out of five characters and a space.
Posted by: JohnM55
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July 12, 2010 2:39 PM
I'm a diabetic, so I tend to pay slightly more attention to carbohydrate counts in food than the general population.
I'm also a cyclist. One day whilst shopping for energy bars I came across a Gillian McKeith "energy" bar. I checked the carb content an found it was marginally above zero. The thought crossed my mind, 'what kind of idiot describes something with next to no carb content as an energy bar?'
The following weekend I read Ben Goldacre on the Poo Lady.
Posted by: Rachel Bronwyn
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July 12, 2010 2:45 PM
I used to watch the trashy television shows this woman did in the UK. Not sure if she does them anymore. Anyhoo, there's a very prominent theme throughout her work: poop. Gillian McKeith is a scatophile. The first thing she always requests from the people she oversees is their poop, regardless whether it has anything to do with their condition. If they didn't provide her with a sample at the beginning of the episode, she pesters them throughout and, when they do, she celebrates overzealously. Her off-topic obsession with poo made me highly uncomfortable, hence why I stopped following her shenanigans.
Posted by: GeorgeFromNY
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July 12, 2010 2:50 PM
JohnM55,
It's a QUANTUM energy bar.
Posted by: kiki
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July 12, 2010 2:51 PM
Nonono. The carbs have undergone a 30x dilution. So they're SUPER-CARBS!
Posted by: KG
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July 12, 2010 2:53 PM
Gillian McKeith? Poo!
amkYes, there are programmes dedicated to ensuring that potential British political leaders are properly indoctrinated in the "special relationship". Suez showed how one-sided the "specialness" is (the US was of course quite right to force British withdrawal). I well remember seeing this Privae Eye cover at the time of Vietnam, but in fact Wislon was the only British P.M. to refuse to send troops to an American war since 1945, as far as I can recall.
Posted by: Kagehi
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July 12, 2010 3:11 PM
My father once pointed out that, despite it seeming to be a stereotype, nearly every engineer he had ever met in his military carrier was Scottish. This woman obviously belonged to one of those "settler" groups that are mostly English, but just happened to end up looking Scottish, due to being on the wrong side of the border when the English royalty agreed to stop trying to breed out the intelligent people, by sending rapists over the border all the time, with supposed "land grants". Seems like a good theory, anyway. Most Scottish people, in my experience, are not that stupid, at least if they have had *any* sort of education at all.
Posted by: A. Noyd
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July 12, 2010 3:13 PM
JohnM55 (#59)
I came across an ad for a zero calorie energy drink once and tried pointing out how silly this was to my coworkers. None of them got it.
Posted by: Zoot Capri
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July 12, 2010 3:34 PM
Where to begin...Start with the science always. Once food enters the alimentary canal, enzymes (amylase and lipase) in the mouth plus the mechanical act of chewing start the break down of food and the digestive process. Then in the stomach, hydrochloric acid and digestive enzymes (pepsin,etc) continue to break down anything we eat. After the stomach, the "food" is ready for absorption into our blood across the mucosa of the small intestine. Photosynthetic properties cannot take place in the stomach, small bowel or large bowel. Why haven't people called her on this and put her out of business? Am I being naive? Sign me a flummoxed RN (with a real degree).
Posted by: blf
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July 12, 2010 3:34 PM
Suggested correction.
Posted by: jcmartz.myopenid.com
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July 12, 2010 4:06 PM
Quack, quack ...
Posted by: Andyo
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July 12, 2010 4:18 PM
Anybody called Oprah yet?
Posted by: Walton, Marquis of Carabas
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July 12, 2010 4:20 PM
blf,
*bemused expression*
Posted by: Andreas Johansson
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July 12, 2010 4:23 PM
Would the rest of me backflip too? Because otherwise, that sounds like a good way to have a massive abdominal haemorrhage.
Regarding "green plants", apparently all by brain are belong to the taxonomists, because I at first assumed reference was made not to colour but to systematics - the "green plants" being the group containing the land plants and the green algae (which are characterized by green chlorophyll, whence the name).
Posted by: Ewan R
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July 12, 2010 4:28 PM
Zero Carb energy bar - store on top shelf for maximum effects.
(that said protein and fat are still both sources of energy)
Posted by: SteveM
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July 12, 2010 4:34 PM
re 65:
If it could enable the release of your own energy stores (i.e. fat), while having no calories of its own, wouldn't it qualify as a zero calorie energy bar? For example, say, amphetamines?
Posted by: Yoav
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July 12, 2010 4:37 PM
In fact, forgive me, but I don’t think you really want oxygen up there, because methane fart gas mixed with oxygen is a potentially explosive combination.
Well, ever since I was a kid I hear that any day now we will all have personal rocket packs. Maybe this is the solution, you eat a ton of weeds shine a light up your bum and ride the flame to the sky.
Posted by: Orange Utan, Librarian of Death
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July 12, 2010 5:12 PM
Wonder if she's a rabid right-winger?
Give her an adam's apple and you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference between her and Ann Coulter
Posted by: A. Noyd
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July 12, 2010 5:14 PM
SteveM (#73)
Technically, yes, but these drinks (and the entire diet industry) rely on people's ignorance over what "energy" is. When I buy an energy bar or drink, I damn well expect to be getting calories. And if stimulants alone qualify as "energy," then any beverage with enough caffeine should qualify as an energy drink, which is why most "energy drinks" add shit like ginseng in an attempt to make it look like there's some source of energy inside the beverage itself. My coworkers certainly had no idea of the distinction.
Posted by: Silič O'Nopolitanopoulos, Färschdbischuf Beesknees aus Ulm und Klein Elguth, Elector Pharynguline.
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July 12, 2010 5:18 PM
That's what I used as well.I was still worried that security would have it blown up, though.
Posted by: Gregory Greenwood
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July 12, 2010 5:21 PM
Walton:
I share your confusion, brood-brother. When will these strange warm-blooded apes realise that brain-eating is strictly frowned upon among British reptilian aliens?
It is considered bad form, what with it being the preserve of two millenia old zombies and all.
We prefer to eat the still beating heart, with a side dish of succulent human broodling. Do try to get these things right, you damned exo-thermo-phobes...
Posted by: Gregory Greenwood
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July 12, 2010 5:25 PM
Oh, my mistake. That should read...
"You damned, dirty apes!"
Does anyone here now enough of 'classic' (in this instance read as 'terrible') SciFi to ID this quote?
Posted by: Cerberus, unnatural product of en-OMnomnom-ification
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July 12, 2010 5:29 PM
Gregory @79
I'm not entirely sure "Planet of the Apes" is anywhere approximating obscure, especially in a geek audience.
Posted by: SteveM
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July 12, 2010 5:29 PM
re 76:
As someone with plenty of his own untapped "energy reserves" I would much prefer an energy drink that could draw its calories from there rather than supplying its own.
I think that for most people, who are like me and far from physically fit, a drink that can give them the "energy" to burn their own calories is reasonable to call an "energy drink".
On the other hand, it is shameful to not be aware of the distinction between a "stimulant energy" and a "caloric energy" drink.
Posted by: SteveM
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July 12, 2010 5:37 PM
re 78:
I think the current terminology is "ectotherm" for you non-endotherms.
Posted by: Brian
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July 12, 2010 5:43 PM
I think part of the reason that Bad Science hasn't managed to find a publisher here in the US is that the book has a strong focus on UK events. I had never heard of Brain Gym, for example, before buying his book (from the Amazon UK website, naturally).
Of course, learning about the UK woo fads was part of why I enjoyed it so much, but I recognize that that puts me a bit outside of the book's originally intended audience.
Posted by: SteveM
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July 12, 2010 5:47 PM
Re "The Awful Poo Lady":
Reminds me of the movie The Madness of King George whose physicians' sole diagnostic tool was daily analysis of the color and consistency of the contents of George's chamber pot.
Posted by: JeffreyD
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July 12, 2010 6:01 PM
Gregory -
You are joking, right? IF you have read this thread when it delves into movies you would realize your quote is from what would be considered a main stream movie. :^}
Posted by: JeffreyD
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July 12, 2010 6:07 PM
Correction, not this thread, the Neverending Thread.
Posted by: A. Noyd
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July 12, 2010 7:03 PM
SteveM (#81)
What's also shameful is the deliberate confusion of the two on the part of the diet industry. If I thought it would change anything, I'd say they should be required to indicate the difference in the labeling. And being low on energy affects me neurologically in ways that stimulants do not help (and usually make worse), which is why I'd much rather get some quick external calories in me.
Posted by: truthspeaker
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July 12, 2010 7:41 PM
I have a Ph.D. in Scientism from Godless Dave's International University, Liquor Store, and Fireworks Emporium. If you don't believe me, then you hate America.
Posted by: timrowledge, Ersatz Haderach
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July 12, 2010 8:09 PM
Except that that was a reasonable diagnostic for Porphyria especially back in the 18CPosted by: First Approximation, L'esprit de l'escalier
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July 12, 2010 8:24 PM
Thanks for the tip. Gave me a good laugh.
Posted by: https://me.yahoo.com/a/wEqJvb95z.aJE1wS9PuXiAaDONHyK4f7CQ--#180cb
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July 12, 2010 8:39 PM
According to Amazon, Bad Science is being published in the U.S. this fall. I highly recommend it, and I assume the U.S. version will be lighter on the prominent U.K. events and people in the original version. It's still a great read.
Posted by: Ellie
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July 12, 2010 9:09 PM
That Awful Poo Lady is still around in the world of TV. She's been forced off the front page, but she's still active in the back channels; she's still grinding out a stream of repellent, psychologically damaging programs based on voyeurism of those with eating disorders. If you have ever sat through an episode of Supersize vs Superskinny: Shame. On. You.
Posted by: AlisonS
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July 12, 2010 9:16 PM
Judy L. #48 I couldn't agree with you more. She is one of the ugliest people on TV both inside and out. The mystery is how she was ever considered suitable for TV. Did the producers never check out her supposed credentials? Did they never have a face-to-face meeting with her? All I can assume is a drunken decision scribbled on a cocktail napkin in some pub. Her shows are like watching a train wreck; just awful.
Posted by: Zoot Capri
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July 12, 2010 9:57 PM
Thanks Ellie, # 92. For 24.95 pounds you can get a "personal health profile," I wonder what you get for that? Does she personally do my health profile?
Posted by: sirjeffere
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July 12, 2010 10:38 PM
To # 93: I disagree. Train wrecks, while undoubtedly awful, can actually be interesting to watch. Her show doesn't even have that.
I'm from Canada. I'm not sure if her show is broadcast there, but I had never heard of her until I moved to Australia. I was flipping through random channels and had the misfortune of finding her show. I watched five minutes of her screaming at overweight people, and switched channels somewhere around the time she started her 'Okay everyone, poop in this container please!' Bit.
Yes. She's a bit crazy.
Posted by: SteveM
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July 12, 2010 11:14 PM
re 89:
That's what I was trying to imply: she is stuck in the 18th century. As for the Porphyria, as I understand it, that is the 20th century diagnosis of the recorded descriptions of George's chamber pots, the physicians of the time didn't really have a clue why his urine was purple.
Posted by: Miki Z
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July 12, 2010 11:31 PM
The "diagnosis" of King George as suffering from porphyria was initially made by a pair of psychologists, not physicians. No slight intended -- it's what my wife does -- psychologists are not really much more qualified to diagnose it than laypersons. Some cases can now be determined genetically, but not all of them, and depending on the variety diagnosis is tricky. It often involves intentionally triggering an attack to measure levels of porphyrins. During an attack, the amount - both relative and absolute - of the various porphyrins and porphyrin precursors aids in diagnosis as well as a determination of type.
Some people are diagnosed nearly from birth (usually there is a family history in these cases), others suffer for decades under various misdiagnoses before finally being diagnosed with porphyria. The severity of porphyria also ranges from minor (e.g. blisters) to severe (including death or complete paralysis).
Posted by: Miki Z
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July 12, 2010 11:34 PM
(I should clarify that I don't know of any physicians encouraging an attack, but from anecdotal reports patients may intentionally trigger or exacerbate one to ensure that lab test results are definitive.)
Posted by: Elwood74
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July 12, 2010 11:59 PM
Would the good people of Portland, OR be more surprised they're a part of Asia, or Australia???
And - is it apocryphal that the movie "The madness of King George" was named as such because the prevailing wisdom at the time was that America audiences wouldn't see "The Madness of King George III" as they hadn't seen parts I and II ....?
Posted by: Elwood74
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July 13, 2010 12:01 AM
uh, sloppy checking... America should be American...
Posted by: Ichthyic
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July 13, 2010 12:01 AM
is it apocryphal
no, it's urban legend.
Posted by: Miki Z
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July 13, 2010 12:21 AM
Not at all. The fear was that if it were called "The Madness of King George III", Americans would go see it expecting a movie about the folly of British politics that fomented the American Revolutionary War. Seeing that the movie was not about that, surely looting would ensue.
Posted by: morriganscrow
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July 13, 2010 2:59 AM
Australia had their own version of this strange type of person - a liver-obsessed, exceptionally thin harridan by the name of Dr. Sandra Cabot. Doctor of what, I'm not entirely sure. She too would harangue folk, and, I believe also had a distinct interest in faeces (usually human).
Is there a farm, or a lab, where these types of people are bred?
Posted by: lpetrich
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July 13, 2010 4:11 AM
Even worse, chlorophyll isn't the part that releases oxygen. Chlorophyll is part of the antenna complexes, which work much like photovoltaic cells.
Here's how oxygen is released. A "water-splitting complex" grabs some water molecules and the rest of the photosynthetic system removes electrons from it. As they are removed, the hydrogen departs as hydrogen ions, leaving behind the oxygen, which eventually departs.
If one wants more oxygen delivery, then one's better off eating iron-rich foods -- the iron then gets into hemoglobin, which is the main oxygen carrier in the blood.
Posted by: Gordy
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July 13, 2010 7:28 AM
gdh #75 "Give her an adam's apple and you'd be hard pressed to tell the difference between her and Ann Coulter"
Brilliant :)))
Posted by: John Morales
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July 13, 2010 7:41 AM
Feeble yet nasty and annoying, rather.
Posted by: Howard
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July 13, 2010 7:46 AM
This is pretty funny - amazing how quickly she turns nasty after a fairly bland comment about her.
Not the first time this kind of thing has happened though, she's not great with criticism it seems. "Dr" Gillian McKeith (well, her nice team of lawyers) tried to get a website of mine removed from Google's search results for the UK because they claimed defamation.
Posted by: KG
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July 13, 2010 7:54 AM
- Elwood74Well, it was adapted from the Alan Bennett play The Madness of George III - no "King" in there, notice. I imagine it's not customary in the US to refer to British monarchs simply as " III" in that way - so Americans might well fail to realise it's about King George III at all, and indeed look for parts I and II.
Posted by: KG
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July 13, 2010 7:56 AM
"III" should read "(name) III" @108
Posted by: Forbidden Snowflake
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July 13, 2010 8:05 AM
Oh, dear. That is indeed some undiluted stupid. Kind of reminds me of "The Perfume", where there was a crazy old count with a nutty theory of "deadly fluids", saying that being in proximity to the ground is harmful to the health. This is sort of the antithesis of that. In the general idea, that is. They're the same in that it's woo. Of course, the plot of "The Perfume" is set up in the mid 18-th century. What excuse have these guys got?Posted by: and7barton
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July 13, 2010 9:15 AM
She not only collects crap, it turns out she talk utter crap and her PhD is crap too.
I read about long ago in "Bad Science", and have often mentioned it to people here in the UK. Usually they either haven't even heard of her, or they HAVE, but aren't interested anyway.
Posted by: Pareidolius
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July 13, 2010 11:32 AM
The Earthing site mangles not only science and reason, it also seems to be set almost entirely in Papyrus, a font that resides in the level of typographic hell one level above Comic Sans. You may now add "Crimes Against the Graphic Arts" to their list of charges.
Posted by: phluxion
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November 20, 2010 3:42 AM
She has a Ph.D. from Clayton College? !
She wouldn't want to mention that in Australia where she is at the moment. A "Clayton's" is often used to refer to something which is a fake. The slang is derived from a non-alcoholic drink which looks like whisky (or even a faker's urine).
Check it out on Wikipedia (your Clayton's encyclopaedia).