Add CategoryCelebrity chef Pete Evans wants Australians to know that all they need to fight the deadly coronavirus is a $15,000 frequency machine that uses “harmonies … found in nature”.
The controversial television cooking show judge, who recently praised the work of notorious anti-vaxxer Robert F Kennedy Jr, spruiked the futuristic-looking machine to his Facebook followers on Thursday night.
In a Facebook live video, Evans said the BioCharger NG, which he sells on his website, is a “pretty amazing tool” which he and his family “use pretty much every day”.
“It’ll take you down some rabbit holes … it’ll take me an hour or two to explain it,” he said.
“Just briefly, it’s programmed with about a thousand different recipes. There’s a couple on there for Wuhan coronavirus that you may be interested in.”
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The device is described on Evans’ website as a “hybrid subtle energy revitalisation platform” that uses “four transmitted energies (to) stimulate and invigorate the entire body to optimise and improve potential health, wellness, and athletic performance”.
A video explaining how it works tells users “just sit comfortably in front of the BioCharger and select a frequency recipe from the menu”.
One “non-invasive” session takes just 12 minutes and as many as six people can sit in front of the device at one time, according to Evans’ website.
Brisbane-based dietitian Mandy-Lee Noble shared the video on Twitter last night.
“Pete Evans is selling this ridiculous device for US$15K claiming it has some action against ‘Wuhan coronavirus’,” she wrote, before urging the Therapeutic Goods Administration and NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard to investigate and “shut Evans down”.
Ms Noble told news.com.au Evans was acting irresponsibly.
“Although this device is unlikely to cause direct harm it can cause indirect harm if people believe it will treat or prevent COVID-19 infection,” she said.
She said items like this were “a risk to the community response to the COVID-19 pandemic.”
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Associate Professor of Medical Science Dr Darren Saunders wrote on Twitter: “Having spent years whipping up baseless fear about WiFi, Pete Evans is now selling a $14,900 hybrid subtle energy revitalisation platform” to pump ‘energies’ into your body.”
Evans in January shared a selfie with Robert F Kennedy Jr, praising his “important work”.
Mr Kennedy, the nephew of US President John F Kennedy, and the son of his fellow politician brother Robert F Kennedy, is one of the most prominent figures in the anti-vaxxer movement in America.
In his social media post, Evans tagged the profile of Children’s Health Defence, an organisation founded by Mr Kennedy that promotes now-universally debunked conspiracies about various vaccinations.
Royal Australian College of General Practitioners president Harry Nespolon said Evans should “stick to talking about ‘activated almonds’ and leave vaccinations alone”.
News.com.au has reached out to Evans for comment.
— with Shannon Molloy