Is Gwyneth Paltrow wrong about everything : how the famous sell us elixirs of health, beauty & happiness by Timothy Caulfield

**An exploration of the effect our celebrity-dominated culture has on our ideas of living the good life** What would happen if an average Joe tried out for American Idol, underwent a professional makeover, endured Gwyneth Paltrow’s “Clean Cleanse,” and followed the outrageous rituals of the rich and famous? Health law policy researcher Timothy Caulfield finds out in this thoroughly unique, engaging, and provocative book about celebrity culture and its iron grip on today’s society. Over the past decade, our perceptions of beauty, health, success, and happiness have become increasingly framed by a popular culture steeped in celebrity influence and ever more disconnected from reality. This isn't just a hyperbolic assertion. Research tells us that our health decisions and goals are influenced by both celebrity culture and celebrity endorsements, our children's ambitions are now overwhelmingly governed by the fantasy of fame, and the ideals of beauty and success are mediated through a celebrity-dominated worldview. But while much has been written about the cause of our obsession with the rich and famous, Caulfield argues that not enough has been done to debunk celebrity messages and promises about health, diet, beauty, or the secret to happiness. From the obvious dangers, to body image of super-thin models and actors, or Gwyneth Paltrow’s enthusiastic endorsement of a gluten free-diet for almost everyone, or Jenny McCarthy’s ill-informed claims of the risks associated with vaccines, celebrity opinions have the power to dominate our conversations and outlooks on our lives and ourselves. As marketing and social media bring celebrities and their admirers ever closer, celebrity status and lifestyle has become a seemingly more realistic and obtainable goal. Being famous has become the main ambition of an increasing number of average citizens, above being kind, successful, or loved. The celebrity brand is at once the most desired state of being (modern day royalty!) and one of the most socially problematic. Caulfield provides an entertaining look into the celebrity world, including vivid accounts of his own experiences trying out for American Idol, having his skin resurfaced, and doing the cleanse; interviews with actual celebrities; thought-provoking facts, and a practical and evidence-based reality check on our own celebrity ambitions An exploration of the effect our celebrity-dominated culture has on our ideas of what it means to live "the good life" What would happen if an average Joe tried out for American Idol, underwent a professional makeover, endured Gwyneth Paltrow’s “Clean Cleanse,” and followed the outrageous rituals of the rich and famous? Health law policy researcher Timothy Caulfield finds out in this thoroughly unique, engaging, and provocative book about celebrity culture and its iron grip on today’s society. Over the past decade, our perceptions of beauty, health, success, and happiness have become increasingly framed by a popular culture steeped in celebrity influence and ever more disconnected from reality. Research tells us that our health decisions and goals are influenced by celebrity culture and endorsements, our children's ambitions are now overwhelmingly governed by the fantasy of fame, and the ideals of beauty and success are mediated through a celebrity-dominated worldview. But while much has been written about the cause of our obsession with the rich and famous, Caulfield argues that not enough has been done to debunk celebrity messages and promises about health, diet, beauty, or happiness. From super-thin models to Gwyneth Paltrow’s endorsement of a gluten free-diet for almost anyone, celebrity opinions have the power to dominate our conversations and outlooks. In this book, Caulfield provides an entertaining look into the celebrity world, including vivid accounts of his own experiences trying out for American Idol, having his skin resurfaced, and doing the cleanse; interviews with actual celebrities; thought-provoking facts, and a practical and evidence-based reality check on our own celebrity ambitions. "We live in the era of health science research. Rarely a day goes by without a public pronouncement of some exciting health-enhancing discovery: a new diet, a new fitness routine, a new drug or alternative therapy. And we are told--by the media, family, government and health care experts--that we should use this information to live a healthier life. But can we really use it to improve our health? What information can we trust? Are areas like genetics really the answer to our health problems? Can we ever believe pharmaceutical companies? In this book, I will use two decades of experience working in the areas of health and science policy to investigate these, and other questions. In a way, it will be a personal search for good, trustworthy, facts about health. It will be a search for stuff that actually works. But this will be more than a simple quest for answers, it will be an exploration of where health information comes from, how it is produced and, perhaps most important, how it is communicated. What will we find? While science is everywhere, the scientific information that passes through most people's field of view (usually via the media) is often wrong, hyped, or twisted by an ideological or commercial agenda"-- Provided by publisher "An exploration of the effect our celebrity-dominated culture has on our ideas of living the good life. Our perceptions of beauty, health, success, and happiness are framed by a popular culture that is increasingly disconnected from reality. This isn't just a hyperbolic assertion. Research tells us that our health decisions and goals are influenced by both celebrity culture and celebrity endorsements, that our children's ambitions are now overwhelmingly governed by the fantasy of fame, and that our ideals of beauty and success are mediated through a celebrity-dominated worldview. The celebrity brand is at once the most desired state of being (modern-day royalty!) and one of the most socially problematic. Health law and policy researcher Timothy Caulfield provides a fun look into the celebrity world, including interesting facts and anecdotes, as well as a boatload of practical and evidence-based advice on everything from diet, skin care, and colon cleanses to detoxing from our celebrity ambitions. Caulfield tries out for American Idol, has a professional makeover, and endures the Gwyneth Paltrow-endorsed cleanse in this thoroughly unique, engaging, and provocative book"-- Provided by publisher