Rosanna Davison Responds To Online Backlash Over Gluten Claims

Rosanna Davison has released a statement on her website following a slew of online backlash over her newspaper column. The former Miss World sparked controversy this week when she penned a piece claiming that gluten is "responsible for a huge range of medical conditions from autism spectrum disorders to schizophrenia to arthritis". Rosanna is a qualified nutritionist. The model and nutritionist went on to say that her husband ditched gluten in a bid to cure his rheumatoid arthritis. Online readers were quick to respond to the claims, including Arthritis Ireland who tweeted: "There is no evidence to suggest that the serious auto-immune disease of #RA can be managed through a gluten free diet." Rosanna's husband Wesley suffers from arthritis.  One reader tweeted: "So disappointed in Rosanna Davison trying to cite studies that claim gluten causes autism." RTE journalist Philip Boucher-Hayes wrote: "This is dangerous nonsense from Rosanna Davison with real world implications for people's health and wallets." Even Channel 4 Embarrassing Bodies' Dr. Christian Jessen weighed in on the claims, branding the piece "idiotically irresponsible".

Monumentally misinformed and idiotically irresponsible. I just hope people are a little wiser than she: https://t.co/gNnGtXFCYA

— Dr Christian Jessen (@DoctorChristian) August 25, 2015

In the statement posted to her website, the 31-year-old said: "Firstly, I completely agree with Arthritis Ireland, in that those who have been diagnosed with RA must manage their disease with the advice of their GP and consultant, and not through diet alone. "My qualification in Nutritional Therapy from the College of Naturopathic Medicine enables me to advise on a client’s diet and nutritional needs, but always in conjunction with their GP if they’re on medication, have a disease or need to get tests done. "Arthritis in all of its forms is a serious and debilitating disease, and sharing my personal story was the intention, not to create any sense of false hope for sufferers or state that a change in diet is all that is needed to cure a disease."