A YouTube star who supported a diet of vegan and raw foods died of cancer after claiming that the diet cured her of the disease. Mari Lopez died in January from stage four cancer. She ran the YouTube channel Liz & Mari along with her niece, Liz Lopez.
Her niece announced Lopez's death in a video uploaded to their YouTube channel.
Cancer, Juicing, And Faith
Liz Lopez's video offered some clue into what Mari Lopez's last days were like. Her niece says in the video that during her final days Mari stopped the raw vegan diet and juicing when she was diagnosed with cancer again. Instead, she chose to undergo chemotherapy and radiation treatments.
In a 2016 video uploaded to their channel both Liz and Mari say that a juicing diet contributed to healing Mari's Stage 4 Cancer. They both also credit God for "intervening" in her life to help get rid of cancer in 4 months. She mentions that after starting the juice diet she returned to the doctor where they were not able to find any signs of cancer in her body.
In the video, Mari says that she pokes to God about the cancer diagnosis. She believed that it was God that guided her to start the juicing diet when something popped up on her computer. Mari's new diet excluded foods such as all types meat, dairy, sugar, and alcohol.
When Mari's cancer returned in December, Liz says that Mari didn't continue with the diet, instead, she chose to take the medical route. Liz adds that it was this change that caused her aunt's health to slip and her death to occur. In the description of the video, Liz outlines what happened to Mari.
"My aunt passed away in December because her cancer came back. My aunt was inconsistent in her diet and spiritual life," Liz wrote in the description for the video explaining Mari's death. "My aunt did not continue juicing/raw vegan diet when she got diagnosed again, she chose to do radiation and chemo."
Liz also sought to clarify statements made by her aunt, including that through the juice cleanse that she was able to "cure" her homosexuality.
"I never claimed to heal my aunt's gay lifestyle through juicing. My aunt chose to make that change on her own, which had nothing to do with her juicing but everything to do with her faith," Liz wrote in the description for the video.
Liz told the Evening Standard that she would continue to upload the video about juicing but that she had added disclaimers to Mari's old videos. She continues to push the benefits of the juice cleanse, while also adding that she was never against medical advice.
