By Tara Haelle
Supplements, including vitamins, minerals, herbs and other “natural” substances, frequently come up in medical studies, though the research is often not as rigorous as it is with drug treatments.
If you are writing about supplements in any form, it’s helpful to check out the following tips to be sure you’re not inadvertently contributing to misinformation, exaggerating benefits, neglecting risks or otherwise leaving out important caveats.
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“Journalists need to prune the overgrowth in the jungle of supplement news,” (Nov. 22, 2016) by Carolina Branson, Ph.D.
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“Why journalists should take greater care when reporting on alternative health treatments,” (July 18, 2017) by Kathlyn Stone.
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Presentation on assessing claims of functional foods and nutritional supplements by Bruce Silverglade, who was legal director at the Center for Science in the Public Interest at the time of the AHCJ Health Journalism 2010 conference panel on “Assessing claims of functional foods and nutritional supplements.”
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Suggested dos and don’ts and resource for reporting on supplements, from AP medical writer Marilynn Marchione.
