The quality of the evidence for dietary advice given in UK national newspapers

Benjamin E J Cooper; William E Lee; Ben M Goldacre; Thomas A B Sanders

doi:10.1177/0963662511401782

The quality of the evidence for dietary advice given in UK national newspapers

Benjamin E J Cooper, William E Lee, Ben M Goldacre, Thomas A B Sanders

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

54 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Introduction: Newspaper reports advocating dietary intake changes may impact on dietary choice and food related health beliefs. The scientific basis and quality of evidence underpinning these reports is uncertain.

Objective: To evaluate the scientific quality of newspaper reporting related to dietary advice.

Design: Articles offering dietary advice from the top ten selling UK newspapers for a randomly selected week were assessed using two established evidence grading scales: developed by the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) and the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN).

Results: Of 111 dietary health claims identified, 72% and 68% (assessed by WCRF and SIGN criteria respectively) had levels of evidence lower than the convincing or probable categories that are recommended for dietary health claims.

Conclusions: Misreporting of dietary advice by UK newspapers is widespread and may contribute to public misconceptions about food and health.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	664-673
Number of pages	10
Journal	PUBLIC UNDERSTANDING OF SCIENCE
Volume	21
Issue number	6
Early online date	11 Apr 2011
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1177/0963662511401782
Publication status	Published - Aug 2012

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abstract = "Introduction: Newspaper reports advocating dietary intake changes may impact on dietary choice and food related health beliefs. The scientific basis and quality of evidence underpinning these reports is uncertain. Objective: To evaluate the scientific quality of newspaper reporting related to dietary advice. Design: Articles offering dietary advice from the top ten selling UK newspapers for a randomly selected week were assessed using two established evidence grading scales: developed by the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) and the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN). Results: Of 111 dietary health claims identified, 72% and 68% (assessed by WCRF and SIGN criteria respectively) had levels of evidence lower than the convincing or probable categories that are recommended for dietary health claims. Conclusions: Misreporting of dietary advice by UK newspapers is widespread and may contribute to public misconceptions about food and health.",

author = "Cooper, {Benjamin E J} and Lee, {William E} and Goldacre, {Ben M} and Sanders, {Thomas A B}",

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AU - Lee, William E

AU - Goldacre, Ben M

AU - Sanders, Thomas A B

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N2 - Introduction: Newspaper reports advocating dietary intake changes may impact on dietary choice and food related health beliefs. The scientific basis and quality of evidence underpinning these reports is uncertain. Objective: To evaluate the scientific quality of newspaper reporting related to dietary advice. Design: Articles offering dietary advice from the top ten selling UK newspapers for a randomly selected week were assessed using two established evidence grading scales: developed by the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) and the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN). Results: Of 111 dietary health claims identified, 72% and 68% (assessed by WCRF and SIGN criteria respectively) had levels of evidence lower than the convincing or probable categories that are recommended for dietary health claims. Conclusions: Misreporting of dietary advice by UK newspapers is widespread and may contribute to public misconceptions about food and health.

AB - Introduction: Newspaper reports advocating dietary intake changes may impact on dietary choice and food related health beliefs. The scientific basis and quality of evidence underpinning these reports is uncertain. Objective: To evaluate the scientific quality of newspaper reporting related to dietary advice. Design: Articles offering dietary advice from the top ten selling UK newspapers for a randomly selected week were assessed using two established evidence grading scales: developed by the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) and the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN). Results: Of 111 dietary health claims identified, 72% and 68% (assessed by WCRF and SIGN criteria respectively) had levels of evidence lower than the convincing or probable categories that are recommended for dietary health claims. Conclusions: Misreporting of dietary advice by UK newspapers is widespread and may contribute to public misconceptions about food and health.

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JO - PUBLIC UNDERSTANDING OF SCIENCE

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The quality of the evidence for dietary advice given in UK national newspapers

Abstract

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