June 26, 2003

Prairie Fare: Surfing the Web for Reliable Information

By Julie Garden-Robinson, Food and Nutrition Specialist
NDSU Extension Service

Whenever I open my email account, I’m bombarded with advertisements for everything from amazing weight loss products to printer supplies. It’s a little annoying.

Being "spammed" by companies that access email lists is commonplace. Thankfully, deleting the email ads only takes a click of the mouse.

As most people know, you can’t believe everything you read. This is especially true when it comes to on-line health-related information.

The Internet provides a world of information about any topic imaginable with a few mouse clicks. The problem is, the accuracy of on-line healthy information can be questionable. With some training anyone can create and post information on a Web site.

With billions of Web sites in Cyberspace, a search for a particular health-related topic may result in hundreds of "hits." How reliable are those hits? How can we decipher trustworthy information from quackery?

Sometimes, the URL suffix (e.g. "gov" used by many government agencies or "edu" used by many educational institutions) gives an indication of the reliability of the information. Web sites with a "com" suffix are sometimes reliable organization sites and sometimes purely commercial.

Be a skeptic. Here are some questions to ask when you search Web sites:

• Who is the author? What are his or her credentials?
• Is there a credible sponsoring institution identified?
• What is the purpose of the site?
• Is the site promoting a particular product?
• How current is the information? Is the information dated? Health information is particularly subject to change as new research is published.
• Are there links to other sources of information? (This sometimes provides a clue to reliability, but not always. Anyone can link to another organization’s Web site.)
• Are the facts documented with sound scientific references? Or is the information solely based on personal testimonials?
• Is there an editorial board that oversees the content?
• Is the information well-written in terms of grammar and spelling? What is the tone of the writing?

These are some Web sites with accurate health information and links:

Tufts Nutrition Navigator is a university site that provides links to and ratings of Web sites as to accuracy of content: www.navigator.tufts.edu

Healthfinder is a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services gateway site to reviewed resources on consumer health: www.healthfinder.gov

Quackwatch is a nonprofit corporation that combats health-related fraud and myths: www.quackwatch.com

NDSU Extension Service is linked to all of the above and at least 150 additional reliable information sources. www.ag.ndsu.nodak.edu/food.htm  (click on other food and nutrition links)

Here’s an easy and nutritious summer salad with just four ingredients. You’ll have plenty of time to surf the web while it chills.

Broccoli/Orange Salad

1 large bunch fresh broccoli, broken into florets
11 oz. can mandarin orange segments, drained
1 red onion, sliced and separated into rings
1/2 c. low-fat or fat-free French salad dressing

Wash broccoli well and separate into florets. Add oranges and onions. Toss with dressing and refrigerate at least 30 minutes before serving.

Makes 8 servings. Each serving contains 50 calories, 1 gram fat, 1.5 grams fiber and 10 grams carbohydrate.

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Source: Julie Garden-Robinson, (701) 231-7187, jgardenr@ndsuext.nodak.edu
Editor: Tom Jirik, (701) 231-9629, tjirik@ndsuext.nodak.edu

[Editors: We’ve updated the illustrated column identifier for Julie Garden-Robinson’s Prairie Fare column. If you’re using an older version or if you would like to use the identifier, please download this printable EPS file. Prairie Fare (142 Kb eps file)]