Why Should You Care About Science?

Posted By elissa on May 14, 2010 | 2 comments

Actually, Paul should be the author of record for this post, as he wrote what follows for the home page of the site. But he didn’t think to post it, so I will… it’s really too good to leave buried behind a link that a lot of people will never click on. 

Heeeere’s Paul:

Why should you care about science-based supplement reviews? Isn’t science really boring—something only of interest to geeks and brainiacs?

That’s a good question.

The reason why you must  care (if you don’t want to get robbed blind, that is) is that in the world of supplements, science is the true “measuring stick” against which the claims made by the retailers of such products can be held.

For instance, suppose a retailer tells you their product melts fat (or builds muscle, or makes you younger or whatever). Suppose they tell you they have hundreds of testimonials and even a doctor’s recommendation to prove their product works as described.

You must remain skeptical.

Why? Because none of this is “proof.”

Because testimonials can be—and are—faked (even genuine testimonials must be viewed with skepticism—people taking diet pills often add diet and exercise into their routines, which may be entirely responsible for their success. And there’s always that pesky placebo effect, too!).

Additionally, some doctors can be bought, or, barring that, completely made up (yes, we’ve reviewed products claiming to be “doctor recommended”, only to discover the doctor was a “stock photo” and s/he didn’t exist).

Sometimes, the retailers will even reference clinical studies to encourage a purchase. Something along the lines of…

“Clinical studies show the key ingredient in our product increased weight loss 400%…”

But when you look at the actual study they are referencing you discover that either the results are extremely exaggerated, or the amount of the ingredient present does not correspond to the amount used in the study (generally it is a fraction of the amount).

Bottom line?

You can only cut to the core of the claims by investigating the peer-reviewed published clinical studies that exist (if any) for the product’s ingredients and report on what those conclude.

That’s why you’ll find links to scientific journal references in all our reviews. You don’t need to read these (although you’re certainly welcome to if you like). They are there so you know we’re not making this stuff up—so you can check our work and ensure we’ve come to the correct conclusions if you like.

Frankly, you should be worried if you do not see science in your supplement reviews. If the reviews are not based upon existing published data, just what exactly are the authors using to base their claims?

Science may seem boring, but it is the only thing that will save you from wasting your hard earned money.