I was visiting my family in NY for the past 10 days. While I was there, I picked up the local paper’s “health and fitness” Sunday supplement. I was hoping tofind some new, interesting information. What I found instead was 16 pages of “advertorials.”
What’s an advertorial? It’s an advertisement cleverly designedto look like a real news article. I was halfway through an article about the latest “magic bullet” diet pill before I realized that I was reading a glorified commercial. The entire Sunday supplement was nothing more than page after page of commercials!
How can you tell the difference between these types of “articles” and real research?
- Read the fine print. Most of these types of articles say somewhere that they are paid advedrtising. Sometimes it’s at the top of the page, sometimes it’s buried.
- Look for the source. Every true research article has lots of footnotes and documented sources. Look for them in every health and fitness story you read.
- Analyze the source. If the “article” quotes a study, there should be specific details about the study either in the article or noted at the end. You’re looking for things like the numberof participants in the study, who conducted the study, what university is associated with the study, who conducted the study.
There are mountains of misinformation out there. Be careful what you read and more careful of what you believe.
To your health!
Gin
P.S. Do you have health and fitness questions that you want to get answered? I’m starting a new “Ask Ginny” page on our site. Stay tuned for launch details.
