Given the flood of health information in the news, the increase in the number of health and medical journals and journal publications, blogs, social media posts, websites, and opinions of family and friends, this brief overview is an attempt to help the reader evaluate headlines and discoveries related to human health. Reading newsfeeds today, one can feel surrounded by data in an information desert.
Determining whether two things among many are merely associated, coincidentally seen together like two strangers passing in a crowded city coffee house, or truly causal, with one reliably following the other in a consistent, predictable pattern, is difficult. The human body contains 60 thousand miles of blood vessels and over 37 trillion cells. It is estimated that each of these cells has approximately one billion chemical reactions per second. Essential nutrients are biochemicals and minerals required by the body for constructing its extensive structure and performing its sophisticated functions. Further, human behavior interacting with the environment is complex and affects the body in a myriad of ways. Therefore, a relevant question is how can a study of one or two variables in a complex biochemical network reliably determine a causal relationship with a specific outcome—in other words, how can it differentiate a mirage from an oasis? A closer look at study design and analysis can improve evaluation of the meaningfulness of past assumptions and the latest health news.
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