Backlash after health blogger claims 'cancer is your body trying to save you'

Danielle Fowler
·Freelance Writer
The health blogger has faced backlash from her followers [Photo: Instagram]
The health blogger has faced backlash from her followers [Photo: Instagram]

A prominent health and fitness blogger has faced backlash online after claiming that ‘cancer and disease is your body trying to save you’.

In a recent post, the Brisbane-based Instagrammer wrote: “Being open-minded and changing your perspective around what disease actually is and why it’s happening, will allow you to take back control of your health and realise that your body is ALWAYS working for you, and never against you.”

WHAT ARE HUMANS BIOLOGICALLY DESIGNED TO EAT? In today’s world we have easy access to an abundance of different types of food, and needless to say, most of us take advantage of this and consume a wide variety of it • Cooking our food and eating animal flesh came about for understandable reasons at certain points of our evolution for survival means. While processed foods developed to allow products a longer shelf life. But just because these practices are common today, doesn’t mean it is the most ideal way of living for us to achieve vibrant health • We need to forget what we’ve been taught and how our culture and technology has modified our diet and lifestyle. We need to tune in to our intuition and give more attention to the features of our digestive physiology, anatomy and biology • So what are the different types of animal classes and which one do humans fall in to, or are most similar to? – A carnivore is an animal that gets food from killing and eating other animals. Omnivores are organisms that feed on both animal tissue and plants. Herbivores are animals that feed on plants. Frugivores are creatures that live primarily on fruits, with the addition of tender leafy greens. – Our anatomy and physiological make up gives us signs as to what we are designed to eat. Our closest animal relatives are gorillas, monkeys and chimps who are all frugivores. In relation to our physiology, our human make up is most closely related to the orangutang in the animal kingdom. Our genetic DNA is over 95% identical • Fruits and tender leafy greens are the fundamental components of the primate eating pattern – and common sense tells us that these foods should be the foods that humans eat, too • This doesn’t mean we cannot SURVIVE on a wide variety of foods (inc. animal meat), but we are designed to THRIVE on a diet of mainly fruit • Here is a quick breakdown comparing basic anatomy between the 4 groups, with a particular focus on meat eaters and humans • CONTINUED IN COMMENTS

A post shared by OLIVIA BUDGEN ♡ (@oliviabudgen) on Aug 19, 2017 at 3:52am PDT

She then went on to claim that cancer is a ‘survival mechanism’ designed to protect the body from toxicity caused by a poor diet.

And her controversial comments understandably sparked outrage from a large number of her 8,931 followers.

One took to Instagram to write: “My partner has terminal cancer. I’m sure you mean well but I can guarantee you are not qualified to make such a dangerous statement. Healthy diet has a very important role to play, but does not come anywhere near being a cure or remedy for cancer.”

He continued, “It is a highly complex and multifaceted disease, and I have witnessed first hand the unbearable pain and trauma it causes. Highly intelligent and dedicated people spend their lives studying cancer. Please leave it to them.”

While others were quick to compare Budgen to Belle Gibson on Twitter, a fellow blogger who controversially claimed that a change in diet cured her of cancer.

Gibson was eventually recently fined more than A$410,000 (£240,000) after launching an app based on her false claims.

And Budgen’s recent comments are just as detrimental as Martin Ledwick, Cancer Research UK’s head information nurse, told The Metro: “The recommendations in Budgen’s social media post bear no relation to any scientific facts about how cancer starts or how it can be treated.”

He continued, “Her stance is extremely insensitive to people who have cancer and to those who have lost someone to cancer, as it implies that a few changes to diet will save them.”


Follow us on Instagram and Facebook for non-stop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day. For Twitter updates, follow @YahooStyleUK.

Read more from Yahoo Style UK:

How a baby noticed her nursing mum’s breast cancer

The breast cancer checks all women (and men!) should be making

Men get breast cancer too