Find Good Medical Info on the Web…Conflicting Medical Studies
One of my favorite sources for trustworthy medical news is the New York Times weekly Science Times section, which comes out each Tuesday. This week it’s especially relevant, as the whole issue covers how we can get better medical care from the “system” and from our doctors.
It’s nice—and not a bad idea—that we might limit our exposure to the medical system, but sooner or later, to get into our 90s healthy and looking good, we need to interact with doctors and probably also hospitals. We all want, and deserve, competent care, yet this goal is not so easily obtained given a health care industry that seems driven more by profit than by the true welfare of the patient.
If you simply Google a medical condition or symptom, you will get millions of results, but, which of these can you believe? Many are selling something or have a particular bias, but that bias is typically not clear when you read the site. Many are written with seeming “authority”, but the writer doesn’t really have it.
Logging On for a Second (or Third) Opinion gives you a start for finding objective, scientific sites, and you will find many good links. (The LLAW Blogroll will also be a resource for you when you start your web searches).
Searching for Clarity: A Primer on Medical Studies is a more dense article, but explains the phenomenon when we see one study saying one thing, and soon another article pops up with the opposite conclusion. For example, do tomato products really lower our risk for prostate cancer? Is Vitamin E good for you? Depends on who you read, and when.
This article gives you hints to help you analyze how well a study was done. Bottom line—human studies are better than animal studies, and when you read a report, see if they mention if it was an “observational” study (more common), or a “clinical trial”:
1. Observational Studies: may not be so reliable
2. Clinical Trials: typically more reliable, and the most reliable of these are “randomized, double-blind clinical trials”.
LiveLongAgeWell » Stressful, Depressing Times?… Eat More Fish! Said,
October 5, 2008 @ 8:27 pm
[...] fish intakes. That alone is not proof that fish is the reason, but there have also been numerous “double-blind clinical trials” that show a positive effect from omega-3s on helping depression and possibly [...]
thestylishman Said,
October 7, 2008 @ 11:32 am
Just make sure you find “wild” salmon as opposed to farm raised. Farm raised salmon is not good for anyone to eat because it contains hormones and artificial color, etc.
LiveLongAgeWell » The Hottest Vitamin Right Now Said,
October 17, 2008 @ 12:27 pm
[...] disease and Alzheimer’s had lower blood levels of vitamin D, but since this was not a clinical trial, it’s not known if taking more vitamin D will cut the risk of those diseases. Again, more studies [...]