If it sounds too good to be true, it usually is.

如果這聽起來好康到有點不真實，那通常它就不是真的。

You might have encountered celery juice in the past couple months.

最近幾個月你可能常常看到芹菜汁。

It started to pop up in juice shops, gourmet delis, and high-end grocery stores.

它開始出現在果汁店、連鎖食材餐廳和高級雜貨店裡。

Anywhere that people could reasonably be expected to pay seven bucks for a drink that contains no alcohol.

任何一個人們會願意花七美元買一瓶不含酒精的飲料的地方。

In fact, it doesn't contain anything, but the juice that results from putting fresh stalks of celery through a juice press.

實際上，芹菜汁裡什麼都沒有，就只是單純從果汁機榨出來的新鮮芹菜莖汁。

For this phenomenon, you have Instagram to thank.

這個芹菜汁風潮可以歸功於 IG 。

As a journalist, I've covered lots of products and ideas that have become popular because of Instagram, but celery juice might be the one most disconnected from reality.

身為一個記者，我曾經報導過許多因為 IG 而大受歡迎的產品和點子，但芹菜汁可以算是其中一個和真實情況最不同的產品。

Many of these trends are pushed by influencers who have huge followings as a result of their perceived authority on health and wellness.

這些風潮大多由因為擁有許多追蹤者而具有健康與身心保健權威的社群領袖帶起。

Some of these influencers have nutritional training and real expertise, but many don't.

其中有些社群領袖有受過營養學相關訓練和真正的專業知識，但是很多社群領袖沒有。

Sometimes they're just good-looking former reality stars with a huge audience to monetize.

有時他們只是擁有許多觀眾可供推銷、賺錢的外表好看的前明星。

Whatever the case, they take great pictures and talk a good game, but there are few mechanisms on the platform to mediate misinformation.

無論如何，他們拍美美的照片、話說得漂亮，但在網路平台上往往缺乏能夠平衡錯誤訊息的機制。

As a trend becomes viral, claims about a food or products benefits lose their context.

當一個風潮急速飆升，關於食物和產品優點的論述就失去了原本的脈絡。

And people who encounter it down the line might assume they come from some sort of authority.

而在這之後碰到這些資訊的人們就會假設這些資訊是從某種具有權威性的地方出來的。

That's usually not the case.

但通常都不是這樣。

If you take the Instagram wellness community's word for it, celery juice can fight inflammation, regulate the microbes in your gut, remove toxins from your bloodstream and cure chronic illnesses.

如果根據 IG 身心保健社群的資訊，芹菜汁可以抗發炎、調節腸道內的微生物、清除血液中的毒素和治療慢性疾病。

Those claims have not only gotten it into stores across America, but also Gwyneth Paltrow's Goop website, Vogue.com, Good Morning America, and the Today Show.

這些說法不只讓芹菜汁順利進入美國的各個店家裡，也出現在 Gwyneth Paltrow 的網站頁面、 Vogue 的網站、早安美國晨間新聞節目和今日秀。

Except according to every actual medical expert I talked to, none of those claims are true.

然而根據我曾經問過的每個醫藥專家，這些說法都不是真的。

Celery is almost all water and relatively low in nutrients, so the best its juice can do is keep you hydrated.

芹菜裡面幾乎都是水、只有極低的營養成分，所以芹菜汁最大的優點大概只有讓你補充水份。

When I looked into celery juice's origins as a trend, most people who had tried it assumed that doctors or medical professionals had recommended it at some point.

當我研究芹菜汁風潮的起源，大部分試過這個產品的人都會預設並認為醫生或醫學專家們曾經推薦過它。

But as I trace back the sequences of people who celebrities, influencers, and regular Instagram users credited for their love of celery juice, it all led back to one man.

但當我追蹤名人、社群領袖和一般 IG 用戶將對芹菜汁的愛歸功於誰時，最終都回到了一個男人身上。

Anthony William, a middle-aged Florida guru who, under the name "Medical Medium," has more than a million Instagram followers.

Anthony William ，一個以「醫藥媒體」作為帳號名稱、有超過一百萬個 IG 追蹤者的中年的佛羅里達保健專家。

The name "Medical Medium" might make William sound credentialed, but the legal disclaimer on his website is careful to explain that he is not.

「醫藥媒體」這個帳號名稱可能讓 William 聽起來很可靠，但是他的網站上的法律免責聲明則解釋了他根本不是個醫藥專家。

Instead, Anthony claims to have been in contact with spirits since childhood, which grants him insights into health beyond what science can prove.

相反地， Anthony 聲明自己從小時候就開始和靈體有接觸，因而對健康有一番超脫於科學之外的見解。

For most people, there's relatively little danger in trying one of these Instagram health fads, which recently have included Himalayan pink salt and glasses meant to protect your eyes from the glare of your phone.

對多數人而言，嘗試 IG 上的健康時尚小方法只有一點小風險，例如最近就有希瑪拉雅粉紅鹽能夠保護你的眼睛不受手機光線傷害的說法。

But for those desperate to find affordable alternatives to traditional care for real ailments, these trends can be a harmful distraction from pursuing care that actually works.

但對於那些努力想要找到金錢上可負擔、可替代傳統醫學治療真正疾病的選擇的人，這些風潮可能反而會延誤真正有效的治療時機。

And throwing away money on juice machines, for example, can make affording care even harder.

甚至，例如都把錢都花在果汁機上，反而會讓原本上可負擔的治療越來越難以負擔。

Remember that the next time a smiling face on Instagram tells you to try something new.

下次看到 IG 上的美麗笑容告訴你該嘗試新東西時，別忘了這個案例。