How we source

If we can't show you the source, we don't say it.

Only three kinds of sources

Every health fact comes from the World Health Organization (WHO), the US National Institutes of Health (NIH, including studies on PubMed), or the UK National Health Service (NHS). Nothing else counts as a source for a health fact here.

Checked word for word

Before a fact is used, it goes through our claims check: the source is opened, the exact sentence that supports the fact is copied from it, and two independent reviewers must agree the fact says nothing stronger than the source. Small studies keep their small print ("in a small study", "in a lab study").

What we never do

• Diagnose, give treatment advice, or talk about medication or doses.
• Make one study sound like a law of nature.
• Use fear, shame or hype to keep you watching.

Corrections

Found a mistake? A corrections address is coming with our email launch. We fix errors openly and note the date of every update.