Sensational headlines are everywhere, especially in the health and fitness arena. Every day it seems we learn another way to add some extra days to our lives, reduce our risk of diabetes, or lose stubborn belly fat for good. But you need to be a careful reader to get the full picture. Look for red flags like a small sample size, a very specific population sample, or any other “but” that you may come across in the article. These tell you that you probably don’t need to run out and change your lifestyle right this second—more research is needed.
If you’re interested in getting more information you can usually track down the original article online (or at least a good abstract). Occasionally, however, it doesn’t matter how carefully you read the research—sometimes the researchers lie. One of the leaders in the area of red wine and your health has been accused of faking the data in several of his studies!
