Ann Louise Gittleman is an American author and proponent of alternative medicine, especially fad diets.[1][2][3][4] She regards herself as a nutritionist. Gittleman has written more than two dozen books and is known for The Fat Flush Plan, a "detox" diet and exercise program that she developed into a series of books. Gittleman's ideas on health and nutrition are regarded as pseudoscience.[1][2][5]
In 1994, she was featured in an advertising campaign for Rejuvex,[7]adietary supplement for menopause symptoms that is not supported by scientific or clinical evidence.[8]
Gittleman has written many books on alternative medical ideas for health and nutrition. Her books have appeared on popular television programs, including 20/20, Dr. Phil, Good Morning America, and The Early Show.[9][10][11] She has been criticized for promoting incorrect notions about medicine, diet, and electromagnetic radiation.[2][3]
Books
In 2001, she released her book The Fat Flush Plan, which became a New York Times best seller, reaching #14 on the "Hardcover Advice" list.[12]
In May 2004, The Fat Flush Plan was described along with other low carbohydrate diets in a Time magazine story, The Skinny on Low Carbs.[13]
Gittleman's books have been criticized as inconsistent with the best understanding of health and nutrition,[2] and for presenting scientific research in a simplistic and one-sided manner.[3][5]
Gittleman's suggestion to detoxify as part of the Fat Flush Plan has made her diet the subject of criticism from some nutritionists and medical doctors.[14] Dr. Judith Stern, vice president of the American Obesity Society, has called the Fat Flush Plan "pseudoscience" that promises everything, but is "a fantasy".[2]
Gittleman's 2010 book Zapped has been met with skepticism by reviewers who say the book incorporates non-scientific concepts to assert the danger of electromagnetic fields, and presents evidence in a biased manner.[3][4][1]
Gittleman has written more than two dozen books advocating an alternative medicine approach to health and nutrition.[15][16]
^Tyler, Varro E. (20 April 1994). "Rejuvex for Postmenopausal Symptoms". JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association. 271 (15): 1210. doi:10.1001/jama.1994.03510390082038. PMID8151882.