Evaluating Nutrition Information Chapter 2

List 3 ways of locating reliable nutrition experts

consumers may find reliable nutrition experts, including registered dietitians, among faculty members in universities or colleges. other ways to find registered dietitians include contacting the local dietetic association, calling the dietary department of a local hospital or visiting the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics website

An example of an Internet website that might contain biased nutrition information is a______.

.com site

Correlation

relationship between two variables occurs when two variables change over the same period direct or positive inverse or negative

Experiment

a systemic way of testing a hypothesis (question)

Placebo effect

positive response to a placebo

Scientific method

1. make observations that generate questions 2. formulate hypothesis to explain event 3. review current scientific literature that relate to the questions 4. design studies, perform tests, and collect data (facts) 5. analyze data and draw conclusions based on the results 6. share results with peers (share findings) 7. conduct more research, the results of which may confirm or refute previous findings

Experiments using whole, living organisms are classified as in , whereas "test tube" experiments are classified as in .

vivo, vitro

dietary supplements herbal supplements

generally safe may have toxic effects

____ ____ ____ practices includes a variety of practices and products that are not accepted by the majority of physicians.

Alternative Health Care

Nutritionist

Although many states regulate and license people who call themselves nutritionists, you can not always rely on someone who refers to himself or herself as a nutritionist or nutritionalist for reliable nutrition information because there are no standard legal definitions for these descriptors

In 1994, Congress passed the ______, a law that classified vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and botanicals as foods, thereby limiting FDA's ability to regulate dietary supplements.

Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA)

Describe the design of a case-control study.

Individuals with a disease are matched to a person with similar characteristics who do not have the disease. Factors are identified that may be responsible for the disease.

A control group is important for which of the following reasons?

It enables scientists to control the influence of other variables in the study. It allows scientists to determine if a treatment had an effect.

Choose the titles that are legally protected.

RD and RDN

Which of the following is true about control groups?

The results of an experiment are unclear or inaccurate if no control group is used.

explain the importance of having a control group when conducting experimental research

a control group is used to compare the results of having a treatment against those of not having a treatment

When Oprah goes on television saying that she lost 50 pounds following a special diet and exercise regime, this is considered _____ and is not reliable scientific information.

anecdotal

what is a peer reviewed article?

article that has been critically analyzed by a group of peers. if peers agree that a study was well conducted, its results are fairly presented, and the research is of interest to the journals readers, these scientists are likely to recommend that the journals editors publish the article

What is the term used for a chemical substance that alters body function and is strictly regulated by the FDA?

drug

Scientists would like to conduct a study to identify lifestyle factors that are associated with delayed physical growth among a group of low-income American children. Which of the following research designs would be the best for the researchers to use when designing their study?

epidemiological

Which types of studies cannot establish cause and effect?

epidemiological

Double-blind study

experimental design in which neither the participants nor the researchers are aware of each participant's group assignment

randomized control trial

experimental study involving humans that usually randomly divides a group of people into treatment and control groups Random assignment helps ensure that members of the treatment and control groups have similar variables, such as age, weight and other characteristics

In order to test hypotheses, research scientists conduct_____

experiments

Placebo

fake treatment, such as a sham pill, injection, or medical procedure

control group

group being studied that does not receive a treatment

treatment group

group being studied that receives a treatment

integrative medical care

medical care provided by health care professionals that coordinates conventional medical therapies with alternative health care approaches

variable

personal characteristic or other factor that changes and can influence an outcome Within an experimental design, a person's age, weight, or environment are all examples of variables

testimonial

personal endorsement of a product

quackery

promotion of useless medical treatments

______ assignment of subjects to groups in a research study helps to ensure that members of treatment and control groups have similar characteristics. This enhances the validity of the study results

random

randomized controlled trial (RCT) must have members of the treatment and control groups assigned _____.

randomly

Anecdotes ("conventional wisdom")

reports of personal experiences

Epidemiology

study of the occurrence, distribution, and causes of health problems in populations

Case-control study

study that compares individuals who have a health condition (such as heart disease or breast cancer) with persons who have similar characteristics but are healthy

cohort study

study that measures variables of a group of people over time Retrospective means to look back Prospective means to look forward

Epidemiologists often rely on ______ people to obtain health data.

surveys of physical examinations of

A characteristic or other factor that can change and influence an outcome is called a _____.

variable

The Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA) of 1994 defines a supplement as a product that______.

adds to a person's dietary intake contains one or more dietary ingredients

John telling his friend that taking a new weight loss pill helped him effectively lose weight is an example of _________ information. Multiple choice question.

anecdotal

Because epidemiological studies are based in observation and are not experimental, _____ cannot be established

causation

list at least 3 examples of alternative health care practices

chiropractic manipulations, yoga, meditation, and use of herbal remedies and nonvitamin, nonmieral products

Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN)

college-trained health care professional who has extensive knowledge of foods, nutrition, and dietetics

alternative health care

health care practices that are not widely accepted and used by conventional medical practitioners

conventional medical care

health care practices that are widely accepted and used by mainstream medical practitioners

what is double blind study?

in a double blind study both the investigators and the subjects are unaware of the subjects assignments in treatment or control groups

Evidence based

information that is based on results of scientific studies

pseudo science

presentation of information masquerading as factual and obtained by scientific methods

True or false: The dynamic and rapidly advancing field of nutrition necessitates that scientists change their recommendations in the light of new, substantiated findings.

true

For the results of an experiment to be accepted by the medical community, a study design must control for _____ that are not being tested. This is done with a control group

variables

Researchers from Cornell University have written a manuscript about the impact of soy consumption on breast cancer risk. Which of the following people is best qualified to be a peer reviewer of the manuscript before it is published?

A researcher from the University of Illinois who specializes in soy research, but did not collaborate on the study

Herbal supplements ____ interact with and influence other medications. Multiple choice question.

can

A ----- group, which receives no treatment, allows researchers to determine if an experimental treatment has any effect.

control

When a relationship between two variables is measured, a _____ can be established.

correlation

Consumers need to be skeptical of nutrition and health-related claims because______.

the FDA cannot prevent the spread of published misinformation nutrition misinformation can be spread through a variety of sources promoters of worthless nutrition products are good marketers

Epidemiological studies _____ establish cause and effect

cannot

Observational epidemiological research includes______.

case-control studies cohort studies

Experiments using whole, living organisms are classified as

in vivo experiments

multivitamin or mineral (MV/M)

describes a dietary supplement that contains vitamins and minerals

what is the difference between a testimonial and an anecdote

a testimonial is a personal endorsement of a product. Anecdotes are reports or personal experiences

what is the major difference between a retrospective study and a prospective study?

a prospective study follows a large group of healthy people over time to determine whether those with a certain characteristic develop a disease and those without that characteristic remain disease free. A retrospective study follows a group of people who already suffer from a disease and compares them to a group of people with similar characteristics who do not have the disease