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Posted on Oct 10, 2002, 2 a.m.
By Bill Freeman
Researchers working for the UK consumer health magazine Health Which. have urged Web users to proceed with caution when consulting internet sites for dietary advice. A panel of experts assessed 10 Web sites to in order to determine whether the advice was coming from suitably qualified people, and if they could provide evidence to support their diet claims - 7 out of the 10 sites scored "badly".
Researchers working for the UK consumer health magazine Health Which? have urged Web users to proceed with caution when consulting internet sites for dietary advice. A panel of experts assessed 10 Web sites to in order to determine whether the advice was coming from suitably qualified people, and if they could provide evidence to support their diet claims - 7 out of the 10 sites scored "badly". The team also signed up two fictitious characters - one an obese man at risk of developing heart disease and type II diabetes, the other a women displaying symptoms of anorexia nervosa - to assess the three higher scoring sites. Only one, www.tntgetfit.com, was deemed to give "good advice" to the characters. www.Ediets.com failed to tell the obese man that his weight was putting his health at risk, while www.Fitbay.net told the borderline anorexic to reduce her body fat.
SOURCE/REFERENCE: Reported by www.reutershealth.com on the 7th August 2001
