Finding Reliable Sources Online

This semester at Queens College I'm taking a course called Nutrition 1. Our first project was to ask a health question and find a reliable internet article that answered it. I loved this project because I am always reading articles online and trying to figure out if they're trustworthy or not. We talked about tips for finding reliable sources and some questions to ask yourself as you read these articles:
     Is the claim too good to be true?
     What is the evidence? Any research?
     Who funded the research study?
     What is actually being tested/measured? How much information is available?
     Look for a Meta-Analysis if possible, a meta-analysis is usually a compilation of multiple research studies on the same topic that have been reviewed by multiple scientists.


For my assignment we had to ask a question, provide an answer listing the article source and explain how you know the source is reliable. We were told to find an article on a current topic, not from a medical journal. Here's what I submitted:

Question: February is American Heart Month, an effort to spread awareness about heart disease and promote heart health. I know that  diets high in animal products have more saturated fats and cholesterol which could contribute to poor heart health. My question is, how does a eating a plant-based diet impact heart health?

Answer: A plant-based diet such as vegetarian/vegan can be very healthy for your heart. Plant-based diets are often high in complex carbohydrates and fiber. People who stick to a plant-based diet have fewer heart disease risk factors including lower blood pressure, half the risk of diabetes, half the risk of hypertension, and are less likely to be obese. Plant based diets have been linked to lower risk of cancer although more research is needed to determine exactly why we see this trend.

URL Article Source: http://www.pcrm.org/health/diets/vsk/vegetarian-starter-kit-powerful

I believe my source is reliable because:

1. The Physicians Commitee for Responsible Medicine is the organization that runs the website. They are a nonprofit made up of doctors that focuses on prevention, education and research.

2. They offer a disclaimer stating they provide information, not medical advice. I think this is their way of saying talk to your doctor before you do anything drastic. It makes them seem like a professional site. They clearly are concerned about clarity and how readers use the information which makes me trust them.

3. The archives on this site are full of research studies to back up the information in this article. I read a study that showed a plant based diet was not only healthy for the heart, but could actually reverse heart disease.

4. They do not make wild health claims. Their findings are consistent with what information I do already know. They make suggestions for a healthy, balanced diet.