2 ms·

>If you could demonstrate in controlled conditions that (ideally more than 13[1]) people who eat and exercise in moderation suddenly start gaining weight when a

>If you could demonstrate in controlled conditions that (ideally more than 13[1]) people who eat and exercise in moderation suddenly start gaining weight when artificial sweeteners are added to their diet (or losing weight when they are removed), it might be an interesting finding. I'm not into psych/medical research, but even in the hard sciences it is often difficult to have enough data to point to a conclusion so unambiguously as to be obvious >If anyone has actual evidence of failure to disclose a conflict of interest in a published study, then it should be reported to the relevant institutions, not used as a platform to denounce all research on a topic. That sounds wonderful but in the real world moneyed interests have and use their means to promote their worldview. Medicine, food, and diet-related markets are lousy with overly ambitious marketers and outright frauds. I did not "denounce all research on a topic" I was responding to another poster who appeared to want to dismiss anyone's concerns about the potential health risks of artificial sweeteners.

dbbolton 12y ago
>difficult to have enough data to point to a conclusion so unambiguously as to be obvious You are right, but that also cuts both ways, which is why we rely on consensus. And the consensus of the international scientific community (not just the FDA or any such organization by itself) is that artificial sweeteners are safe. You are also right that CoI is not always a black-and-white issue, but that doesn't mean suspicions should be withheld from regulatory bodies and the publishing journal(s). Writing an OpEd on a personal webpage is not the most effective means to expose CoI, and, more importantly, such articles do not immediately overrule all consensus. If you really believe that the majority of studies involving the safety of artificial sweeteners are wrong, the best course of action is to demonstrate it empirically by duplicating the experiments and coming up with different data. Put together a reasonable paper, and other researchers will take note of it-- even if you believe the conspiracy theory that all major journals are puppets of the food industry. Ultimately, the data will trump the politics.

dbbolton 12y ago

>difficult to have enough data to point to a conclusion so unambiguously as to be obvious You are right, but that also cuts both ways, which is why we rely on consensus. And the consensus of the international scientific community (not just the FDA or any such organization by itself) is that artificial sweeteners are safe. You are also right that CoI is not always a black-and-white issue, but that doesn't mean suspicions should be withheld from regulatory bodies and the publishing journal(s). Writing an OpEd on a personal webpage is not the most effective means to expose CoI, and, more importantly, such articles do not immediately overrule all consensus. If you really believe that the majority of studies involving the safety of artificial sweeteners are wrong, the best course of action is to demonstrate it empirically by duplicating the experiments and coming up with different data. Put together a reasonable paper, and other researchers will take note of it-- even if you believe the conspiracy theory that all major journals are puppets of the food industry. Ultimately, the data will trump the politics.