Nutrition is always making news. Newspapers and television tout the latest claims. Books, magazines and websites abound to help you lose weight, build muscle, prevent aging and live longer. Good nutrition advice is backed up with science. Unproven and misleading information is frustrating and can be dangerous to your health. There are ways to evaluate the reliability of your source. Learn how to tell if nutrition information is valid or should be taken with a grain of salt.
Step 1
Locate the original source of information. Media reports and articles should refer to the authority providing the facts. Books about nutrition should contain a bibliography so readers can see who the author used for source material. Work without sources is questionable and difficult to evaluate.
Step 2
Determine the trustworthiness of the source. Studies are funded and produced by government, universities and industry. Note whether the research institution is biased toward a certain outcome and bear it in mind when reviewing the study.
Step 3
Know the credentials of the reporting agency. Government departments, professional health organizations, consumer advocacy groups and volunteer associations are responsible communicators of nutrition information. They examine peer-reviewed science journals, the publishers of original research.
Step 4
Take into account how much research has been done on a particular nutrition subject. The more studies completed with similar results, the more likely the outcome is realistic. Breakthrough stories based on one or two interventions usually do not have the evidence necessary to form a definite conclusion.
Tips and Warnings
- For a list of recommended nutrition websites, visit Tufts University Nutrition Navigator (see Resources.) Web domain names that end with .edu or .gov are reliable sources for nutrition information.
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