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Chapter 2
Evaluating Nutrition
Information
Lecture Outline
Nutrition for Healthy Living
Sixth Edition
Wendy J. Schiff, MS, RDN
Traci L. Keck, MS, RDN, LD

© 2022 McGraw Hill, LLC. All rights reserved. Authorized only for instructor use in the classroom.
No reproduction or further distribution permitted without the prior written consent of McGraw Hill, LLC.
 Quiz Yourself True or False
1. Scientists use anecdotes as scientific evidence to support
their findings. True or false?
2. Popular health-related magazines typically publish
articles that have been peer-reviewed. True or false?
3. By conducting observational epidemiological studies,
medical researchers can determine risk factors that may
influence health. True or false?

4. Dietary supplements include vitamin pills, as well as

products that contain echinacea, ginseng, and garlic. True
or false?
5. In general, registered dietitian nutritionists are reliable
sources of food and nutrition information. True or false?
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 How Did You Do?
1. False Scientists do not use anecdotes as scientific
evidence to support their findings.

2. False Popular health-related magazines typically publish

articles that have not been peer-reviewed.

3. True By conducting observational epidemiological

studies, medical researchers can determine risk factors
that may influence health.

4. True Dietary supplements include vitamin pills, as well as

products that contain echinacea, ginseng, and garlic.

5. True In general, registered dietitian nutritionists are

reliable sources of food and nutrition information.
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 The Scientific Method

In the past, nutrition facts and dietary practices were often

based on:
• Intuition
• Common sense
• Conventional wisdom (“tradition”)
• Anecdotes (personal reports)

Today, nutrition experts rely on results collected from

scientific research (evidence-based results).

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 Scientific Method: Basic Steps

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 Laboratory Experiments

• An experiment is a systematic way of testing a hypothesis

(question).

• Experiments are often conducted on rats or mice before

performing similar research on humans.

• In vitro experiments or “test tube” experiments are

conducted on cells or other components derived from
living organisms.

• In vivo experiments are conducted on whole living

organisms, such as mice.

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 Science for Consumers: Key Terms

• Evidence based: information that is based on results of

scientific studies

• Anecdotes: reports of personal experiences

• Treatment group: group being studied that receives a

treatment

• Control group: group being studied that does not receive

a treatment

• Variable: personal characteristic or other factor that

changes and can influence an outcome

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 Treatment and Control Groups

Most experiments that involve animals or humans have a treatment

group as well as a control group. Having the two groups allows
scientists to compare results.

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 Human Research: Experimental (Intervention) Studies

• Experimental studies involving humans may be used to

obtain information about health outcomes related to
specific dietary practices.

• Members of a large group of human subjects are randomly

assigned to either the treatment or control group.

• This kind of experiment is called a randomized

controlled trial (RCT).

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 Key Terms for Human Intervention Studies

• Placebo: fake treatment, such as a sham pill, injection, or

medical procedure.
• Placebo effect: positive response to a placebo.
• Double-blind study: experimental design in which neither
the participants nor the researchers are aware of each
participant’s group assignment.
• Single-blind study: researchers know which subjects are
in the treatment and control groups.

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 Human Research: Epidemiological Studies

Epidemiology: the study of the occurrence, distribution, and

causes of health problems in populations.
Observational Epidemiological Studies:
• Case-control study: Individuals with a health condition
are matched to persons with similar characteristics who do
not have the condition.
• Cohort study: collects information and analyzes variables
from a large group of people over time
• Cohort studies can be:

• Prospective

• Retrospective
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 Epidemiological Studies: Case-Control Study

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 Types of Cohort Studies

Prospective
• Means “to look forward”
• Follows group of healthy people into the future and looks
for factors that may have contributed to changes in their
health
Retrospective
• Means “to look back”
• Researchers collect information about a group’s past
exposures and identify current health conditions.

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 Limitations of Epidemiological Studies1

Epidemiological studies can show relationships, but cannot

establish causation, that is, whether a practice is
responsible (the cause) for an effect.

Cause  Effect

When two events or observations occur simultaneously

within a population, it is not necessarily an indication that one
is related to (or causes) the other.

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 Limitations of Epidemiological Studies 2

What is a correlation?
• A relationship between variables
• Occurs when two variables change over the same period
• A direct (positive) correlation results when two variables
change in the same direction.
• An inverse (negative) correlation occurs when two
variables change in opposite directions.
It is important to understand that some changes could be
coincidences (unrelated events) and not the result of “cause-
and-effect” relationships.

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 Examples of Direct and Inverse Correlations

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 Analyzing Data, Drawing Conclusions, and Reporting
Findings

• Researchers use a variety of statistical methods to

analyze data.
• These methods allow for finding relationships between
variables and health outcomes.
• Researchers summarize findings and seek to publish
scientific articles.
• Articles submitted for publication in scientific journals
undergo peer review before being published. Peer review
is a critical analysis of the study and its findings conducted
by a group of “peers.”

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 Research Bias

Scientists are expected to collect and analyze data in an

honest and objective manner.
• Avoid the influences of personal attitudes or biases.
• Peer-reviewed scientific journals require authors to
disclose funding sources.
• After the results of a study are published, it is important to
spread the news by sharing the findings with other
scientists.

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 Confusion and Conflict 1

• Conflicting study results are often the result of different

study methods.
• The science of nutrition is constantly evolving.
• Old beliefs and practices are discarded when they are not
supported by more recent scientific evidence.

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 Become a Critical Consumer of Nutrition Information

• Do not assume that information in popular media is

reliable.
• Be wary of ads for nutrition-related products that rely on
testimonials and anecdotes.
• Consumers are responsible for questioning and
researching the accuracy (reliability) of nutrition
information.
• Consumers should be alert for pseudoscience, the
presentation of information masquerading as factual and
obtained by scientific methods.

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 Ask Questions

• What motivates the authors, promoters, or sponsors to

provide the information?
• Is the source scientific, such as an article from a peer-
reviewed nutrition journal?
• If a study is cited, how was the research conducted?
• Does the source cite respected nutrition or medical
journals or mention reliable experts?

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 What Is Quackery?

Quackery is promoting useless medical treatments.

• Practicing medicine without proper training is illegal.
• However, providing nutrition information and advice
without proper training is legal.

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 Look for Red Flags 1

• Promises of quick and easy remedies

• Claims that sound too good to be true
• Scare tactics
• Personal attacks on registered dietitian nutritionists or
conventional scientists
• Statements about the superiority of certain dietary
supplements or unconventional medical practices

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 Look for Red Flags 2

• Reliance on testimonials and anecdotes

• Information that promotes a product’s benefits while
overlooking its risks
• Vague, meaningless, or scientific-sounding terms
• Sensational statements with incomplete references or
sources

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 Look for Red Flags 3

• Recommendations based on a single study

• Information concerning nutrients or human physiology that
are not supported by reliable scientific evidence
• Results disclaimers, usually in small or difficult-to-read
print

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 Some examples

https://zichunteas.com/blogs/news/gaba-gold-oolong-super-tea-is-it
-really-a-super-
tea

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PglLweAccOM

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2017/03/02/lear
n-dr-ozs-trick-blasting-belly-fat-hint-s-not-gym/98625872
/

https://scitechdaily.com
/dentalslim-diet-control-researchers-develop-world-first-weight-los
s-
device/
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 Results Disclaimer

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 Using the Internet Wisely

Be careful and consider sources of Internet information.

Consider:
• Who or what organization sponsors the site?
• Is the information intended to promote sales?
• Is there a comprehensive disclaimer such as:

“The manufacturer is not responsible or obligated to verify

statements.”

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 Tips for Searching Nutrition Information on the Internet 1

Table 2.1
To Be a Careful Consumer of
Internet Sources of
Information:
1. Use multiple sites such as
.gov or .org.
2. Rely on sites managed by
qualified health
professionals.
3. Look for the HONcode
symbol on the website. Health On the Net Foundation. www.hon.ch/en

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 Tips for Searching Nutrition Information on the Internet 2

4. Do not trust information at a site that does not indicate

valid sources.
5. Be wary of sites that have surveys for you to complete or
advertisements and promotions.
6. Do not trust a site that attacks the medical or scientific
establishment.
7. Be wary of commercial sites (*.com), even those with
links to reliable sites.

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 COVID-19 and Quackery

In 2020, a federal court issued a temporary restraining order

to stop owners of a business from marketing and distributing
“colloidal silver” to treat/cure COVID-19.
• Colloidal silver is generally not recognized as safe and
effective for preventing or treating COVID-19 or any
medical condition.
• The FDA considered the company’s colloidal silver
preparation to be an unapproved new drug.
• In response, the business removed their product’s website
and provided online instructions for obtaining a refund.

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 Reliable Nutrition Experts

• There is no standard definition for “nutritionist” or

“nutritionalist.”
• Physicians generally do not have extensive college
coursework in this subject.
• Reliable sources of information include nutrition professors
at colleges and universities with nutrition and/or dietetics
departments, registered dietitians (RD)* or registered
dietitian nutritionists (RDN)*.
• * Legally protected credentials

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 Becoming a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN)

Three major professional divisions in dietetics:

• Clinical dietetics
• Community nutrition
• Food systems management

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 Becoming a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist

1. Complete an ACEND
accredited baccalaureate
degree program.

2. Compete supervised
practice program or
dietetic internship
professional practice
experience.

3. Pass the national

registration examination.

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 What Are Dietary Supplements? 1

According to the Dietary Supplement Health and

Education Act of 1994 (DSHEA), a dietary supplement:
• adds to a person’s dietary intake and contains one or more
dietary ingredients, including nutrients or botanicals (herbs
or other plant materials);
• is taken by mouth; and
• is a concentrate, metabolite, constituent, or extract.

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 What Are Dietary Supplements? 2

Dietary supplements include:

• Nutrient pills
• Protein powders
• Herbal extracts
• Multivitamin/mineral products

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 Some Popular Non-Micronutrient Dietary Supplements

Refer to Table 2.2 for a list of some popular dietary supplements,

major claims, and some known health effects such as benefits and
risks.

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 Conventional Medicine versus Alternative Health Care
Practices

• Conventional medical care: Health care practices that

are widely accepted and used by mainstream medical
practitioners, such as surgical procedures and
medications.
• Alternative health care: Health care practices that are
not widely accepted and used by conventional medical
practitioners, such as the use of dietary supplements,
yoga, chiropractic manipulations, and meditation.
• When the two types of health care are combined, it is
called “integrative” medicine.

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 How are Dietary Supplements Regulated?

• Dietary supplements are

regulated as a non-traditional
category of foods, not as
drugs.
• Supplements bypass strict FDA
regulations imposed on
medications (drugs).
• FDA regulates labels on
supplements and claims
allowed on them.

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 Using Dietary Supplements Wisely 1

• When used properly, micronutrient supplements are

generally safe.
• Herbal supplements may contain toxins.
• Highly toxic or cancer-causing plants include comfrey,
pennyroyal, sassafras, kava, lobelia, and ma huang.

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 Using Dietary Supplements Wisely 2

• Determine if the supplement is necessary.

• Discuss your need for the supplement with your physician
or RDN.
• Consult a physician before giving to children.
• Consult a physician as soon as you develop signs and
symptoms of serious illness.
• Be wary of claims made about a supplement’s benefits
and investigate by searching for reliable information.

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