Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Inaccurate, misleading reporting, or a complete inability to comprehend a study summary?

This makes me wonder.  The headline reads "Sugar can make you dumb, US scientists warn"--however, that's not the conclusion I took from the summary of the study.  Yes, the rats that had only high-fructose corn syrup added to their drinking water didn't retain what they'd learned, but the other group didn't have just plain water, but omega-3 fatty acids added to theirs. 

Honestly, the way I read it implied that the group with the omega-3s added to their water also had the high fructose corn syrup, but that detail was omitted by the reporter that wrote up the story.  I'd have to see the actual report written by those who did the study to be sure.  However, since the selection and omission of details is something I teach in my composition classes, I can usually recognize when someone is using that tool in spinning something to support the views they don't want challenged.   

I strongly suspect that this is another attempt by the big government "you will eat your hair shirt and like it" Puritanical food nannies to control what we consume, and how much. 

10 comments:

  1. "Put the Snickers bar on the ground and walk backward toward the sound of my voice! Keep your hands where I can see them!"

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    Replies
    1. Nah...they'll go for your non-diet soda of choice, first. Then, they'll go for your candy bars.

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    2. You'll get my Reese's when you pry it from my cold, dead, chocolate smeared fingers.

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    3. For me, it's Butterfinger or Skittles or Starburst. But yeah. Amen to that.

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  2. It might be valid to conclude a diet of pure corn syrup seems to impede your ability to think. The problem appears to be a lack of comprehension on the part of the reporter, and a poorly designed experiment on the part of the scientists. Perhaps if they'd had a set of control rats that had a "normal" diet, and a test set that had a normal diet + corn syrup - you could make the articles conclusion fit.

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    Replies
    1. Or maybe the reporter just eats a lot of corn syrup...

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    2. Richard--the way that experiment was set up seemed to demonstrate more that omega-3s are good for your memory than that corn syrup was bad for it.

      TinCan Assassin--nah,the reporter just went to journalism school. There's enough BS there to rot anyone's brain.

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  3. The more important health issue with the 'corn syrup' is its effect on your blood sugar levels....why? Look it up!

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    Replies
    1. Lucky thing I eat a whole lot more regular sugar--most of my sweet stuff is home made.

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    2. The body's metabolism can't tell the difference between sugar and corn syrup......

      (Splenda works just fine for me.)

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