Belle Gibson

Annabelle Natalie Gibson (born 8 October 1991) is an Australian health fraudster, former influencer and pseudoscience advocate. She is the author of The Whole Pantry mobile app and its later companion cookbook. Throughout her career as a wellness guru, Gibson falsely claimed to have been diagnosed with multiple cancer pathologies, including brain cancer, which she was effectively managing through diet, exercise, natural medicine, and alternative medicine therapies. She falsely claimed she had donated significant proportions of her income and company profits to numerous charities. Gibson admitted in an April 2015 interview that her claims of having multiple cancers had been fabricated.

Consumer Affairs Victoria announced legal action against Gibson in 2016, and 2017 the Federal Court of Australia supported most of their claims, applying a fine of A$410,000.

Early life and education

Annabelle Natalie Gibson was born on 8 October 1991[1][2] in Launceston, Tasmania.[citation needed] According to interviews given before she was exposed, she left her Brisbane family home at age 12 to live with a classmate and later lived with a family friend.[3].

Gibson attended Wynnum State High School in Wynnum, Queensland, until dropping out in Year 10,[4] although she also later claimed to have been homeschooled.[5]

Career and deceit

Gibson worked for some time as a trainee for catering supply company PFD Food Services in Lytton,[6] but social media posts show that by late 2008 she had relocated to Perth, Western Australia. She was involved in the skateboarding culture and actively participated in its online community there.[7][8] Gibson moved from Perth to Melbourne in July 2009 and became a mother one year later, at age 18.

In 2012, Gibson launched her instagram account, "@healing_belle", claiming she had brain cancer and promoting nutrition and lifestyle interventions. The account amassed "200,000 followers within a year".[9]

She launched The Whole Pantry mobile app in August 2013, at age 21.

Gibson reportedly told a prospective business partner in 2014 that she had "several names" that she went under.[10] In an interview with The Australian Women's Weekly she said that "her mother changed her [Gibson's] name five times".[11] Gibson's corporate filings indicate that she is three years younger than she has publicly claimed to be.[1]

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belle_Gibson