By: Lieba Nesis
The diet industry continues to be one of the most controversial and least regulated, as evidenced by the recent lawsuit brought by renowned dietitian Tanya Zuckerbrot against Instagram influencer Emily Gellis Lande. The 49-year-old Zuckerbrot, filed a 57-page defamation complaint against Gellis for $500,000: alleging harassment with a 75-day campaign of 4,500 “defamatory” posts claiming the diet caused miscarriages, rashes, hives, gastric distress and in some cases death. According to the suit, Tanya was caused great “emotional distress” and feared for her life and the safety of her family and employees with Gellis allegedly drawing prison garb on top of a photo of Zuckerbrot, comparing Zuckerbrot to Jeffrey Epstein and Harvey Weinstein, calling Zuckerbrot a loser cyber bully who poisons people, writing threats to F-Factor dietitians and exposing the home address of Zuckerbrot. Moreover, Zuckerbrot claims her product sales which were $1.2 million in May saw a significant drop in August to $254,000 before hitting rock bottom in September with $90,000. Zuckerbrot attributes the withdrawal of a $2 million investment from venture capital firm Evolution V.C. Partners (based on a valuation of $40 million) to Gellis’s conduct despite CEO Gregg Smith claiming he was unaware of the Internet criticism.
Zuckerbrot has hired pitbull Clinton attorney Lanny Davis and former US attorney to Illinois Dan Webb to go against Gellis-a clear case of David vs. Goliath as Gellis has raised $32,000 on a GoFundMe Page to assist her in obtaining legal representation. Zuckerbrot, who is a public figure, will face a number of legal obstacles in her defamation claim as she is required to prove the statements were “false” and were conducted with “actual malice” another significant hurdle. Truth is an absolute defense to a libel claim and Zuckerbrot faces a risk of dismissal as most of Gellis’s posts were taken from aggrieved Zuckerbrot clients. Gellis has similarly claimed that Tanya has published her home address online and repeatedly tried to shut her efforts down by sending cease and desist letters to diet whistleblowers, erasing negative client comments on Instagram and harassing Gellis’s family for months. Gellis is threatening with a fraud countersuit and has referred to Tanya as the devil.
Zuckerbrot and Gellis maintain a number of similarities as they are two proud Jewish women who possess a considerable amount of business savvy and a significant degree of influence. Zuckerbrot has over 100,000 Instagram influencers and Gellis currently has more than 200,000. However, Gellis lives in a modest apartment in New York while Zuckerbrot recently purchased a $22.5 million home on Park Avenue. Zuckerbrot’s husband Anthony Westreich is a real estate mogul who is CEO of Monday Properties while Emily’s husband Michael Lande works in business development at a Data Systems company. Prior to Zuckerbrot making her Instagram private, she could frequently be seen flying private to St. Barts with her Louis Vuitton luggage, or planning a surprise trip for her sister to Dubai while lounging in a designer bikini.
Zuckerbrot epitomized the American Dream living a relatively drama free life until April when the New York Post revealed Zuckerbrot violated quarantine by taking a private jet to Delray Beach Florida during the height of the pandemic; a different publication later disclosed she received a $300,000 PPP loan during the pandemic from First Republic Bank-hardly the typical beneficiary of a handout. Zuckerbrot has built a multimillion dollar business over the past 20 years based on her high-fiber low calorie eating plan whose slogan “eat carbs, dine out, drink alcohol, and work out less” has proven sufficiently enticing to get clients to pony up to $25,000 for ten consultations accompanied by powders, bars and food shopping excursions. In fact, one hour with Zuckerbrot in a supermarket will set you back $1,500 according to a 2013 New York Times article.
Zuckerbrot, a graduate of University of Michigan who has received her masters in food and nutrition from NYU has written two diet books and counts Megyn Kelly, Molly Sims, Katie Couric, Donny Deutsch and Olivia Culpo as devoted clients. The cornerstone of the diet is the GG Bran Crispbread, an appetite control cracker that speeds up the metabolism by absorbing fat and calories.
Zuckerbrot has claimed that out of the 174,000 distinct orders in the last two years she has received only 50 health-related complaints-less than .03 percent. The 34-year-old Gellis, who has never been on the diet, tells a different story claiming that women began flooding her Instagram messages in July with claims of long-lasting rashes, intense cramps and metal poisoning with the diet encouraging disordered eating. Afraid to antagonize Zuckerbrot these women posted anonymous messages ultimately forcing Zuckerbrot to release a Certificate of Analysis on August 27th proving her powders did not contain dangerous levels of lead or arsenic. Zuckerbrot, who can be seen sporting $10,000 bags and dresses while sipping a glass of wine is the antithesis of Gellis who sells $34 dresses and skincare products on the internet while regularly chowing down on bagels and cookies. Zuckerbrot has acquired fame through her unattainable lifestyle, while Gellis has garnered followers through her relatable approach.
Gellis, a Gwyneth Paltrow lookalike, has become a crusader for the underdog, rallying against anti-Semitism, harmful diet programs and abusive Soul Cycle instructors. Yet it is the battle with Zuckerbrot that keeps Gellis followers glued to her Instagram account as the fight continues to heat up with a recent revelation the Department of Justice is interviewing Zuckerbrot clients for a possible witness intimidation claim against Zuckerbrot-another far-fetched endeavor. Gellis’s almost round-the-clock postings and updates continue to captivate her avid followers-after all during a deadly pandemic the chance for any diversion is a welcome reprieve from the monotony of everyday life.
