Pete Evans

[[File:Pete Evans 2.png|thumb|right|165px|For your political beliefs I score you... a 1]]
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'''Pete Evans''' {{lived|1973}} is an [[Australia]]n celebrity chef, anti-[[Water fluoridation|fluoride]] campaigner, [[conspiracy theorist]] and [[paleo diet]] advocate.<ref>Sydney Morning Herald (30 March 2017) [http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/health-and-wellbeing/pete-evans-provides-evidence-for-his-fluoride-claims-20170328-gv8naf.html Pete Evans provides 'evidence' for his fluoride claims]</ref> BTW, paleo diet is not a [[fad diet]], just ask Pete.

Pete is best known for his role as a judge on the highly popular Australian television show ''MKR'' (''My Kitchen Rules'').

He is also notorious for writing a self-published cookbook for babies.

==Webshites==
The Paleo Way website was created by Evans in 2013, and it described itself as a guide for anyone wanting to go paleo.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20180227030151/https://thepaleoway.com/ The Paleo Way] (archived from February 27, 2017).</ref> It was run by Evans himself, Luke Hines ("personal trainer"), Nora Gedgaudas ("expert [[nutritionist]]"), Trevor Hendy ("[[Soul]] Coach") and Helen Padarin ("[[Naturopath]]). A subscription to the site would have set you back $99 AUD for a lifetime subscription or $10 a week. As with most lifetime subscription, it's your lifetime or the site's lifetime, whichever is shorter; in this case the site went kaput in 2020. This was a small price to pay for a 
lifetime
 short time of amazing benefits, one of them being the knowledge that you are helping Pete earn a lot of money.

Following the disappearance of The Paleo Way website in 2020, "Evolve Network" popped up later in the year. Besides promoting the paleo diet, it also promotes the [[ketogenic diet]], the [[carnivore diet]].<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20201117203822/https://evolvenetwork.tv// Evolve Network] (archived from November 17, 2020).</ref> Other dangerous [[crackpot]]s who are promoted on the site include [[JP Sears]],<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20201117204725/https://evolvenetwork.tv/channel/jp-sears JP Sears] ''Evolve Network'' (archived from November 17, 2020).</ref> [[David Icke]],<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20201117205240/https://evolvenetwork.tv/channel/david-icke-1 David Icke] ''Evolve Network'' (archived from November 17, 2020).</ref> [[Del Bigtree]],<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20201117205619/https://evolvenetwork.tv/channel/del-bigtreet Del Bigtree]] ''Evolve Network'' (archived from November 17, 2020).</ref> [[Andrew Wakefield]],<ref>[https://archive.is/s9F3b Andrew Wakefield] ''Evolve Network'' (archived from 17 Nov 2020 20:56:47 UTC).</ref> [[Joseph Mercola]],<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20201117205945/https://evolvenetwork.tv/channel/dr-mercola-part-3 Joseph Mercola] ''Evolve Network'' (archived from November 17, 2020).</ref> and [[Sherri Tenpenny]].<ref>[https://archive.is/ycJPV Sherri Tenpenny] ''Evolve Network'' (archived from 17 Nov 2020 21:03:23 UTC).</ref>

==Nora Gedgaudas==
A self-educated "expert nutritionist", she holds many [[anti-science]] beliefs such as that the "use of cod liver oil helps children recover from [[autism]] due to the DPT [[vaccine]]", and claiming the pertussis toxin interferes with retinoid receptors in the [[brain]]. She does not, however, have any university qualifications whatsoever.<ref>[http://www.primalbody-primalmind.com/vitamin-a-under-attack-down-under/ Vitamin A Under Attack Down Under — Primal Body Primal Mind]</ref><ref>[http://www.primalbody-primalmind.com/about-nora-gedgaudas/ About Nora Gedgaudas — Primal Body Primal Mind]</ref>

==Paleo diet recipe book for babies==
The book might as well have been titled "Googoo Gaagaa" for all the intelligence that it expresses, but the authors settled on the nonsensical ''Bubba Yum Yum'' instead. If you want to wreck your child with an [[Megavitamin therapy|overdose of vitamin A]], you probably shouldn't be wasting your time on [[RationalWiki]]. Ask [[Fun:University of Google|Dr. Google]] and it will tell you anything you want to believe.

Pan Macmillan Australia originally planned to publish the book,<ref>[https://www.worldcat.org/title/bubba-yum-yum-the-paleo-way/oclc/903774694&referer=brief_results ''Bubba Yum Yum: The Paleo Way''] by Pete Evans; Chatlotte Carr; Helen Padarin (2020) Plum (an imprint of Pan Macmillan Australia). ISBN 1743537042.</ref> but completely dropped Evans as an author after he posted a cartoon on Facebook. The cartoon depicts a caterpillar wearing a [[MAGA]] hat and a butterfly with a {{wpl|Black Sun (symbol)|Sonnenrad symbol}} on its wing. The Sonnenrad is a Nazi symbol used primarily by the SS, and is still in use by both Nazis and [[neo-Nazis]]; since Evans is a [[Donald Trump|Trump]] supporter, you can connect the dots.<ref>[https://www.bandt.com.au/pan-macmillan-drops-pete-evans-amid-neo-nazi-scandal-as-10-boots-him-from-im-a-celeb-line-up/ Pan Macmillan Drops Pete Evans Amid Neo-Nazi Scandal, As 10 Boots Him from ''I'm a Celeb'' Line-up] (17 November, 2020)''B&T Magazine''.</ref> An earlier edition of the book was self-published by one of the co-authors.<ref>''Bubba Yum Yum: The Paleo Way for New Mums, Babies & Toddlers'' by Charlotte Carr, Helen Padarin, and Pete Evans (2015) Charlotte Carr. ISBN 0994326408.</ref>

With some help from other nutrition and health "experts" like Charlotte Carr (self described as an actress, voice artist and presenter) and Helen Padarin (a naturopath, nutritionist and medical herbalist), Evans wrote the ultimate paleo diet recipe for babies, which, if followed closely, will prevent autism, obesity, allergies, auto immune diseases, stuttering, premature ejaculation, negative body image, depression, hairy palms, constipation, tooth decay, kidney stones, [[communism]]… you know, [[Panacea|the lot]]. For an exhaustive list, consult any paleo expert. A possible explanation for this is that the baby could be [[dead]] well before it has time to develop any of the above problems (according to Professor Heather Yeatman — the president of the Public Health Association of Australia.<ref>[http://www.mamamia.com.au/news/paleo-baby-book-shelved/ Pete Evans’ paleo baby cookbook will no longer be published by Pan Macmillan]</ref>) The book has received similar praise from other leading health and diet experts and institutions. It has a disclaimer saying that relying on the information from the book could lead to negative health consequences.<ref>[http://www.nzherald.co.nz/lifestyle/news/article.cfm?c_id=6&objectid=11416218 Pete Evans' paleo book on hold over fears 'a baby may die']</ref> Because, you know, paleo works and is perfectly safe.

==Sunscreen will kill you==
Other than his never-ending quest to dispense unqualified dietary advice to the general public, Evans publishes comments on his Facebook page on any topic that tickles his fancy. On one particularly notable occasion in 2016, he claimed that sunscreen contained "[[chemophobia|poisonous chemicals]]" and advised his followers not to apply these products.<ref>Sydney Morning Herald (10 July 2016), [http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/celebrity/celebrity-news/paleo-and-my-kitchen-rules-chef-pete-evans-says-sunscreen-contains-poisonous-chemicals-20160710-gq2d7e.html Paleo and My Kitchen Rules chef Pete Evans says sunscreen contains 'poisonous chemicals']</ref> An admirable stance in a country which has one of the highest rates of skin [[cancer]] in the world.<ref>Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (2016), [http://www.aihw.gov.au/WorkArea/DownloadAsset.aspx?id=60129555783 Skin cancer in Australia]</ref>

After criticism from pretty much every relevant medical organisation in the country, with one describing him as "the kitchen version of [[Pauline Hanson]]", he decided that it was a good idea to restate his original claims in an interview with another television channel. Evans posed the unforgettable question: "[Why] do you need a qualification for to talk [[common sense]]?"<ref>The Guardian (27 March 2017), [https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2017/mar/27/ama-accuses-pete-evans-of-endangering-lives-with-unscientific-health-advice AMA accuses Pete Evans of endangering lives with unscientific health advice]</ref>

==COVID-19 "cure"==
Evans was fined over $25,000 by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (Australia's regulatory body) for selling and promoting a "BioCharger" device (marked as a "hybrid [[Subtle energy|subtle energy]] revitalisation platform") that claimed to cure [[2019-20 COVID-19 outbreak|COVID-19]]. His website claimed that the phallic-shaped item was "proven to restore strength, stamina, coordination and mental clarity" and could cure the disease using light, [[Electromagnetism|electromagnetic waves]] and [[Audio woo|"frequencies"]].<ref>Australian Broadcasting Corporation (24 April 2020), [https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-04-24/pete-evans-fined-25000-by-tga-over-coronavirus-biocharger-claims/12183050 Pete Evans fined $25,000 by Therapeutic Goods Administration over coronavirus claims relating to BioCharger]</ref>

This episode prompted yet another response from the president of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) who advised the public to "ignore his social media content" and that the machine "doesn't do anything but drain your wallet".

==Conspiracy theories==
[[File:Pete_Evans_Conspiracy.jpg|thumb|250px|One of the images shared by Evans on his social media profiles, proving once again that fame ≠ sanity.]]
After losing his job in May 2020,<ref>TV Blackbox (7 May 2020), [https://tvblackbox.com.au/page/2020/05/07/exclusive-divisive-cooking-show-judge-pete-evans-departs-the-seven-kitchen/?feed_id=1880 EXCLUSIVE | Divisive cooking show judge Pete Evans departs the Seven kitchen]</ref> his social media and levels of [[Wingnut|wingnuttery]] skyrocketed. He began sharing material from [[David Icke]], which eventually culminated in him posting other conspiracy theories (described as "[[fringe]] even among [[QAnon]] adherents")<ref>Buzzfeed (12 May 2020), [https://www.buzzfeed.com/cameronwilson/pete-evans-qanon-conspiracy-instagram This Celebrity Chef Lost His Job Then Immediately Posted QAnon Conspiracy Theories On Instagram]</ref> and content supporting Donald Trump.<ref>Instagram (11 May 2020), [https://www.instagram.com/p/CABro77jvXC/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link Pete Evans Instagram Post]</ref>

==See also==
*[[Anti-vaccination movement]]
*[[2019-20 COVID-19 outbreak]]
*[[Quackery]]

==External links==
*[https://evolvenetwork.tv/ Evolve Network]
*[https://www.facebook.com/blockedbypete/ Blocked By Pete Evans - Facebook page documenting his latest woo]

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==References==
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Evans, Pete}}
[[Category:Alternative medicine promoters]]
[[Category:Anti-vaccination movement]]
[[Category:Australians]]
[[Category:Autism woo]]
[[Category:Chemophobes]]
[[Category:Conspirituality]]
[[Category:Food woo]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Water fluoridation]]
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Categories: Alternative medicine promoters, Anti-vaccination movement, Australians, Autism woo, Chemophobes, Conspirituality, Food woo, Living people, Water fluoridation