If you’re thinking about a two-week diet of only maple syrup, lemon and pepper because it looks good on Naomi Campbell, Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore, think again.

Sense About Science (SAS), an independent charitable trust in the United Kingdom, is intent on shattering celebrity-endorsed health and fitness claims. According to Kate Kelland, Reuters, December 2010, “In an annual list of what it sees as the year's worst abuses against science, the SAS campaign group debunked diet and exercise suggestions made by actors, pop stars and others in the public eye in an effort ‘to help the celebrities realize where they are going wrong and to help the public make sense of celebrity claims.’”

In response to pop star Sarah Harding who crumbles charcoal over her food to absorb damaging stuff in her body, SAS comments that charcoal absorbs toxic molecules in gas masks and sewage treatment, but the body removes damaging stuff on its own. To counter the theory of fighter Alex Reid who claims to reabsorb his sperm to prepare for a big fight by not ejaculating, John Aplin, reproductive research scientist at the University of Manchester, says that sperm cannot be reabsorbed; they die after a few days and, actually, the nutritional content of the ejaculate is rather small.

When reading celebrity health and fitness pointers SAS advises you that nothing is chemical free, detox is a marketing myth, bodily functions occur without boosting and fitness can only come from food and exercise.