Celebrity chef Pete Evans (of the famed activated almonds) is a big paleo fan, and has released a cookbook called ‘The paleo Way’. Source: Supplied

The British Dietetic Association (BDA) has revealed its annual list of the top five celebrity diets to avoid in 2015. The paleo diet came in second, only to be beaten from the top spot by urine therapy, the Bear Grylls-endorsed practice of drinking your own urine for “cosmetic, medical or wellbeing purposes.”

Rounding out the list were the sugar-free diet, made popular by I Quit Sugar’s Sarah Wilson, the VB6 diet (where you only eat vegan food before 6pm) and the clay cleanse diet.

The paleo diet advocates eating like cave men did, meaning no processed foods, no grains or legumes, dairy or sugar. It was the most Googled diet in 2013 and paleo cookbooks — such as Pete Evans’ The Paleo Chef — have become bestsellers.

The BDA’s spokeswoman, Sian Porter, said her organisation receives hundreds of inquires about diets, “from the weird and faddy right through to the downright dangerous, such as the Breatharian Diet that calls on people to live on fresh air and sunlight alone! 2014 has been no exception.”

‘Divergent’ actor Shailene Woodley is a fan of eating clay. Photo: Jason Merritt. Source: Getty Images

“Quite often the fad diets we come across come at a price. Firstly, there can often be a cost to your health if you follow these diets over a period of time and secondly, there are often accompanying books, products, paid-for memberships or online services that can quickly add up. The truth is, if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is.”

The Dieticians Association of Australia echoes the BDA’s sentiment. Australia’s leading nutritional body has long campaigned against the paleo diet, advocated by celebrity chefs like Pete Evans, and says it is dangerous.

“I think we’ve got to realise that the average age of cave men was 25 years old,” a spokeswoman for the DAA, Julie Gilbert, told news.com.au. “So while the paleo diet might have supported them, that diet is not going to support us where our life expectancy is into our 80s.

“At the end of the day, everyone seems to be looking for the magical solution and continually going down this part of ridiculous unproven claims, just to try and lose weight. And we’re not achieving it, because obesity is growing rapidly.”

Ms Gilbert says diets such as paleo only work because you are cutting out entire food groups and therefore reducing your overall kilojoule consumption.

“Any diet that cuts kilojoules will end up in weight loss. But you don’t have to cut out whole food groups — like grains or dairy — to achieve that,” she said.

The protein focused paleo diet excludes grains, legumes and dairy. Source: Supplied

“It’s really frustrating that we, as a group of accredited dietitians, keep telling people what to do — eat more vegetables, eat two pieces of fruit a day — but they don’t want to follow proven scientific results. They’d rather the quick, celebrity-endorsed fix that’s got no scientific backing, and in some cases, are quite dangerous.

“Do your research. Just because it says celebrity, does not mean [the diet] is based on any scientific evidence. There are some really good diets out there that have the support of dietitians, such as the Mediterranean diet and the low-GI diet.”

Celebrity chef and paleo advocate Pete Evans says he is highly amused by the BDA’s list.

“Is someone taking the piss? I usually don’t post things like this [the BDA list] but I couldn’t stop laughing,” he wrote on his Facebook page on Thursday.

“I am slightly pissed off by the urine drinkers for taking out first place ... Maybe next year we can beat them to top place, but not at their own game ... ewww!”

Since revealing in 2012 that he loves to eat activated almonds, Evans has found himself defending the paleo diet from critics who believe the movement is dangerous and too expensive for the average person.

The celebrity chef, who has 485,000 Facebook fans, is often criticised by organisations such as the Dieticians Association for his left-of-field health and medical beliefs.

Evans is currently spearheading a campaign to have fluoride removed from tap water in Western Australia, an idea that is universally rejected by health professionals and dentists.

Read more about the BDA’s worst celebrity diets here.