Elle Macpherson under fire for advising fans to drink meal replacement shakes

Viewers have slammed Elle Macpherson after she revealed that she often skipped dinner in the lead up to summer in an attempt to get bikini-ready.

The 54-year-old Australian supermodel made the controversial comments on British breakfast show This Morning, telling hosts Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby that replacing dinner for protein shakes helps her get the perfect summer body.

"Summer's coming up, and I too am getting ready for my summer body," Macpherson said on segment called 'Elle Macpherson: Beach Body Secrets'. "I know that sounds really corny, but we all think about that."

Among her tips to fitting into her cossie was to drink plenty of water, cut out "anything white" (that is, rice, bread and cream), and get on board a meal replacement plan.

"Sometimes I'll use it as a meal replacement in the evenings," Macpherson said. "If I've had a really strong breakfast or a strong lunch, I can get away with having a protein shake for dinner.

"If it's leading up to summer, and you want to drop a few pounds, that's the way I do it and I find it really, really helpful," she added.

Although Macpherson -- who's long been dubbed The Body -- recommended this diet hack be followed for only a "short period of time," she still attracted criticism from viewers.

"Why are @thismorning promoting 'beach body ready' with @ellemacpherson talking about how she sometimes replaces dinner with a protein shake? NO. The only way to be beach body ready is by putting on suncream and a swimsuit," commented one Twitter user.

While another wrote, "Thank goodness Elle Macpherson is on @thismorning telling us how to get beach body ready. I thought I just needed a beach and a body. Shame on you #ThisMorning."

Macpherson has not responded to the controversy her comments generated.