Gwyneth Paltrow, Queen of Questionable Quack Science

Despite Gwyneth Paltrow’s good intentions, the actress-turned-Goop website blogger/entrepreneur continues to be a sucker for rich-people health trends and evolving ideas about health science.

Her fourth cookbook, “It’s All Easy: Delicious Weekday Recipes for the Super-Busy Home Cook,” out April 12, will feature recipes that are “surprisingly tasty, with little or no sugar, fat, or gluten.” One example: A grilled-cheese sandwich. Made with Gruyere.

While this new book already has critics crying about the ridiculously “Easy” — as in the title — recipes, Paltrow always manages to draw complaints about some of her Goop foodie and lifestyle ideas.

For instance, when Paltrow recently posted the recipe for a breakfast “smoothie” she swears by, the Internet went nuts trying to put one together, and some suggested it would cost $200 to assemble all the ingredients. The drink consists of maca powder, ashwagandha, ho shou wu, cordyceps, moon dust, action dust, beauty dust, spirit dust and Himalayan sea salt, among other ingredients.

[lz_bulleted_list title=”GP’s Morning Smoothie” source=”http://goop.com/recipes/gps-morning-smoothie/”]1 cup almond milk|1 tablespoon almond butter|1 teaspoon coconut oil|2 tablespoons vanilla mushroom protein powder|1 teaspoon maca|1 teaspoon ashwagandha|1 teaspoon ho shou wu|1 teaspoon cordyceps|1 teaspoon moon dust of choice: Action Dust to soothe overworked muscles, Beauty Dust for a glowy complexion and healthy hair, Brain Dust to combat mental fogginess, Goodnight Dust when sleep has been evasive, Sex Dust, for, you know, and Spirit Dust to get that extrasensory perception going.|pinch Himalayan sea salt|pinch vanilla powder (optional)[/lz_bulleted_list]

The ingredients sound exotic, and the confident air with which she promotes her odd concoctions leads some of her fans to believe she understands more about body science, recipes and lifestyles than she actually does. Some of the ingredients in her recipes have what doctors have called questionable health benefits.

George Washington University’s Dr. Mikhail Kogan told the Washington Post he was skeptical of the actual health benefits of one ingredient, Cordyceps, a fungus that turns insects in zombies.

Another smoothie ingredient, Ho Shou Wu, is known for causing some people to have severe liver problems and increases estrogen levels in some women, which increases the chances for cancer.

Paltrow has long been a supporter of “clean eating” and the “elimination diet” movement. The elimination diet cuts gluten, dairy, soy, eggs, corn, pork, beef, chicken, beans/lentils, coffee, citrus fruits, nuts and nightshade vegetables.

Obesity expert Dr. Yoni Freedhoff, on Maclean’s Science-ish blog, characterized Paltrow’s purge of so many ingredients “as non evidence-based hope, and at worst, as plain old malpractice.”

The star also has some strange ideas about water. She wrote on her website Goop in 2014 about water having feelings and “how negativity changes the structure of water.”

Paltrow pondered Japanese doctor Masuru Emoto’s writings from his book, “The Hidden Messages in Water.”

“I am fascinated by the growing science behind the energy of consciousness and its effects on matter,” Paltrow said.

And then there is her love for the ancient Korean treatment of “V-steaming.” Paltrow suggested women use the treatment of vaginal steaming to cleanse the uterus and balance hormones, even though many gynecologists have come out against this method.

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Mary Jane Minkin, M.D., a clinical professor of ob-gyn at Yale School of Medicine, told Women’s Health magazine that there are few bacteria around the uterus and the existing bacteria is generally good for the area.

“Heating the vagina isn’t necessary; it’s kept at body temperature, which is perfect. Any hotter and unwanted bacteria and yeasts such as candida will proliferate, normal enzymes start to get sluggish and increased blood flow due to the heat will make the vagina itchy,” Dr. Ann Richardson wrote in The Guardian.

“If you’re in L.A., you have to do it,” says Paltrow.

One would think Paltrow has an army of advisers to influence her ideas about food and health, but one of her biggest influences on all this is none other than Leonardo DiCaprio.

“[DiCaprio] was vegetarian and he’d talk about how dirty meat is and how bad factory farming is. I haven’t eaten red meat in 20 years,” Paltrow said of her vegetarianism.

Now that Gwyneth will be promoting her new cookbook of more than 125 recipes, we’ll be sure to hear more of her intriguing ideas of how the hoi polloi can be more like her. Let’s all take a moment to think of her track record before jumping aboard her latest Goop recommendation. Or maybe just go make a grilled-cheese sandwich (Cheddar works fine) and call it a day.