Is there a way to Cope with the Overload of Nutritional and Health Information?

INTRODUCTION It's probably true that unless you keep up with subject matter in your field of expertise you are no longer in the cutting edge of the science. In my case, I seem to cringe in what one can read or hear about nutrition or health as fraud in the market place. Retirement allows me to broaden my interest in food science, related fields, marketing and ethics, thus with these guidelines I offer the following comments. FOOD SCIENCE It was not unusual for me to ask in student examinations the question: What is the title of the textbook used in this course? Provide the name of the author or authors and what credentials are offered. Many students thought such questions were unfair and many failed to answer them. It seems to me that if you use a textbook or read a scientific article shouldn’t one want to know if the authors are qualified to discuss the subject matter? When a food scientist with expertise in processing technology or food sanitation starts offering advice in the practice of medicine without a license, I question these actions, as should the consumer of such information. The editor-chief of Public Health Nutrition, Barrie Margetts, wrote in a 2006 editorial 9(2),169-173 that “scientists are privileged and our reputations depend upon trust”. Whenever we find wrongdoing in science, we have a responsibility to speak out.