Be mindful of the information source

“Recommended by experts!”

Opinions of experts, authorities, or other respected individuals may not necessarily be reliable sources when considered in isolation.

Even treatment claims made by experts or authority figures should not be accepted without support from scientific evidence.

There are many instances where leading experts, respected researchers, and esteemed colleagues disagree about the value of a treatment.

The trustworthiness of a claim cannot be decided by how experienced, well-known, or “expert” the person making the claim is. Claims that are founded on fair comparisons can be found in sources considered to be well respected as well as those which are not.

While expert opinions or explanations are a form of evidence it is prudent to verify these opinions with scientific evidence. It is never wrong to ask an expert why they advise a particular course of action or what evidence they have used to form their opinion.

BEWARE of expert opinions that are not backed up by scientific evidence or claims which include the phrase “recommended by experts”.

REMEMBER: The only way to be sure of a source’s trustworthiness is if it is supported by scientific evidence with fair comparisons.