Funny, I wrote an article last week for mint.com, an online personal finance managing program, on 15 ways to save money buying natural foods. My purpose for writing the article was to give people tips on how they can save some money while buying the typically more expensive organic and/or natural foods. I know "organics" and "natural foods" are big marketing buzz-words, these days, and many people are hearing some of the benefits to buying natural foods and are taking their cues from the media and buying them. I have heard many people state that although they would like to buy more natural foods, they can't afford to. So I came up with some tips based on my years of experience as both a shopper and a degreed nutritionist.
However, much to my surprise, writing this article, which in my view was a non-political blog post, brought out many different kinds of political zealots who decided to attack me (my writing) on how inaccurate my information was (which it wasn't, by the way) and how people like me are destroying the environment, health, and pretty much all of society. Funny, I thought I was just writing about finding a grocery store that has good deals on milk...
Let me first say that most of the comments I received on my article were very positive. So to the over 550 people who liked my article, THANK YOU! Much appreciated.
However, the handful of negative comments are the ones that I would like to address, today. Those with negative comments asked me for my "sources", while they were giving me their sources. Interestingly, they all gave me the same, exact single source; Michael Pollan. If you are not familiar, Michael Pollan is the NYT best selling author who wrote "Omnivore's Dilemma" and "In Defense of Food". Even more interesting than the fact that they all cited this one and only source, was the fact that they believed I was not familiar with him. So let me assure those who are skeptical that I do infact know of Michael Pollan, I have actually read his books (even own them), and I even found them to be good books to read. Phew, I said it...
So to clarify a few things here, I was not trying to debate the moral, social or environmental issues surrounding "organic" farming. I was solely focusing on health and personal shopping tips. Secondly, Michael Pollan has done some of his homework and has written some interesting books. But he is one guy with one opinion. It is worth taking into account that he tells some great stories from experiences that he has had, but one guy's experiences doesn't hold a candle to decades of scientific research. I am not saying he is not accurate, I am saying that many of the claims found on organics vs. non-organics, in regards to health, have not been studied in great depth among the scientific community. He may be right, or not, but regardless, to get all of your information from one source is not a sound way of getting your information.
Interestingly enough, I did my Master's thesis on High Fructose Corn Syrup and it's relation to obesity (a hot topic these days). I chose the topic because, much like my critics, I had read many books written by people about how horrible it is for your health. So I couldn't wait to delve into all those scientific journals full of published studies that would back up all the claims. Much to my surprise, I didn't find much. There have been quite a few studies on fructose, but not high fructose corn syrup. I also conducted my own research and found no such connection between HFCS and obesity. I was disappointed.
My point is, and while many may disagree, studying nutrition is not like studying art. Art is relative, meaning we can interpret it in a variety of ways. We can have different opinions on whether or not it is good. But nutrition is a science. And science doesn't work that way, it isn't relative. You formulate a hypothesis, you test it, you test it again, you get results, you formulate a theory. But one test isn't enough and one study isn't enough. You need many tests, conducted in the exact same manner with the exact same criteria from many sources that produce the same results many times. And then, and only then, can you claim some validity. That is science.
So for those who wanted my sources here they are:
1. Scientific journals that include published studies that have been peer-reviewed and accepted as sound by the scientific community.
2. 10 years of college education.
3. College textbooks that I use for teaching.
Now, to give the critics credit (because, believe it or not, I am one of you, too) scientific journals do not always tell the whole story. There are most definately politics involved that alter what actually gets published. If studies show results that do not agree in favor of the funder, then they may not see the light of day. I know that. So I, too, am skeptical. But, in general, I am not a conspiracy theorist and I don't beleive that everyone is out to get me (or you, for that matter), and although nothing is perfect, I do look to science for my sources.
So if you want to know my advice on getting good information from reliable sources, here are some good tips.
a. Does the website (or book, wherever) give you sources that designate a published, scientific study(ies)?
b. Were the studies conducted on enough people? (Doing a study of 12 people isn't really "proof in the pudding")
c. Does the person or persons dispensing the information have something to gain from it (are they selling supplements, diet pills, books, etc..)?
d. Is the source from a major university or government agency? Usually, they are your most reliable sources (though not always).
e. Who funded the study? (again, is there monetary gain involved)
f. Is it from a non-profit organization? (such as the American Diabetes Association) Usually a good soucre, too.
g. Does it make sense to you?
h. Is it safe?
Take these things into account when deciding if the information you are getting is reliable. And if you get your information (only some of it, hopefully) from me, know that I follow these golden rules stated above whenever I share information.
And again, thanks to all the support and all of the Diggs that brought my article to #1 in the World and Finance section on digg.com.
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