Celebrity chef Pete Evans peddling dangerous advice about sunscreen ‘poisons’ and skin cancer

IT’S time people stopped listening to Pete Evans. He’s peddling dangerous and misinformed medical advice as certified fact, says Susie O’Brien.

vans was caught out promoting an unhealthy and potentially deadly approach to sun safety and sunscreen Picture: Mark Calleja

WHEN are we going to wake up to the fact that chef Pete Evans is little more than a celebrity quack?

Sure, he might be cute, but he’s peddling dangerous and misinformed medical advice as certified fact.

This week Evans was caught out promoting an unhealthy and potentially deadly approach to sun safety and sunscreen.

On his popular Facebook page, which has an impressive 1.5 million followers, Evans was asked last week what he uses for sunscreen.

Pete Evans and Nicola Robinson. Picture: Instagram

In reply Evans said “generally nothing”. “I keep an all over tan all year and don’t stay out for super long periods in the sun”.

He noted that when out for longer periods surfing he uses surf mud.

He then went out of his way to call sunscreens “silly”.

“People put on normal chemical sunscreen then lay out in the sun for hours on end and think that they are safe because they have covered themselves in poisonous chemicals which is a recipe for disaster as we are witnessing these days”.

“The goal is always never to burn yourself,” he concluded.

After an almighty backlash from the mainstream media, Evans clarified his comments by saying he’s “not staying out long enough to burn”.

He blamed the media for trying to “twist the story to create fear and drama”.

“Wise up as to what you’re putting on or into your precious children! At the end of the day I’m just a passionate family man trying to do my best by my family and I’m openly sharing our journey!”

Actually, Evans’ status as a celebrity chef and self-styled health coach and natural-living guru means he is much more than a family man sharing his “journey”.

Sadly, his ill-informed advice is dangerous.

For a start, sun damage starts in as little as ten minutes. A tan does not offer protection from sun damage, and you can get skin cancer even if you do not get burnt.

He is right on one thing — people using sunscreen having a false sense of security.

But this is because they often don’t apply sunscreen enough. This is much more of a problem than the chemicals in the product itself.

Susie O’Brien believed a healthy diet and keeping a “tan all year” is simply not enough to protect against skin cancer. Picture: Justin Brierty

Evans’ Facebook page is packed with his passionate followers sharing their own dubious wisdom. One says she uses coconut oil for “short sun exposure”.

Others quote skin specialists who say sunscreen actually causes cancer, and that if people have a healthy diet they have no need for external protection from the sun.

Others preach about the “healing” power of the sun and the “poisons” in sunscreen. “We don’t go near it,” one Evans fan wrote.

There’s also links to sites such as thetruthaboutcancer.com which is filled with stories about how diet can cure and prevent cancer.

While good food has been found to be greatly beneficial in keeping people healthy, there is no accepted body of medical research that shows diet alone can cure or prevent cancer.

The site also has alarming articles on the dangers of vaccination, again peddling misinformation and half-truths.

“Truth be told, there has never been a single study conducted using the gold standard that compares the health outcomes of vaccinated children to unvaccinated children,” one article on thetruthaboutcancer.com reads. Truth be told, there is a rare and unified consensus among the medical and research community about the benefits of vaccination.

Although Evans didn’t bite when he was asked this week to share his views on vaccination, he leaves such websites up on this page, giving the information status and legitimacy it doesn’t deserve.

There are also many people sharing stories about how the paleo diet pushed by Evans cured rheumatoid arthritis and sleep apnoea.

While having a healthy diet and staying at a healthy weight will always be beneficial for people with serious medical problems, such claims are not backed up with scientific evidence.

With regard to sunscreen, I’m more inclined to follow the Cancer Council than a celebrity chef.

The council makes it clear that sunscreen use has been scientifically proven to reduce skin cancer risk.

Given that 1400 Australians die from skin cancer every year, we should be suspicious of anyone suggesting we give sunscreen a miss.

A healthy diet and keeping a “tan all year” is simply not enough to protect against skin cancer, as Pete Evans should well know.