Skip to 0 minutes and 0 seconds Have you ever wondered why nutrition headlines contradict each other for one day to another? Do you know how to interpret the science behind these claims? Avoid falling victim to attention grabbing headlines by training your intuition, and developing your skills of interpreting nutrition research. Explore and debate the perspective and experiences of the journalist, the scientist, and you, the reader. Learn how to discover the truth behind food headlines.
Food and Nutrition: The Truth Behind Food Headlines
Learn how to find reliable, scientific information about food and nutrition and identify the truth behind food headlines.
19,385 enrolled on this course
Duration
3 weeksWeekly study
2 hours100% online
How it works
Food and Nutrition: The Truth Behind Food Headlines
This course has been certified by the CPD Certification Service as conforming to continuing professional development principles. Find out more.
Rebuild your trust in nutrition science and look beyond the media headlines
Please note this course runs without facilitation
Due to conflicting messages from the media, it’s becoming harder to know what to believe when it comes to following a healthy diet and lifestyle.
On this course, you’ll compare how nutrition and health topics are handled by the media and science.
You’ll be encouraged to think critically about the information behind media headlines and come to your own conclusions about what’s good for you.
You’ll explore the psychology of why we’re easily influenced by headlines and learn about different types of biases, like confirmatory and availability bias.
You’ll also learn how to find reliable information online and identify unreliable health studies.
What topics will you cover?
• How to analyse a headline by understanding the biases that we, as readers, bring to our understanding of food and nutrition stories.
• Become familiar with the journalist’s perspective, the agenda behind the story and the hooks used to make readers interested.
• Discover how to find out about the original science the story is based on and understand how to interpret the results of the research.
• Learn about the regulations surrounding food and nutrition and where to find reliable sources of information.
• Understand the processes of publishing scientific articles
• Use tools that help identify unreliable sources of information.
Who is this accredited by?
The CPD Certification Service:
The CPD Certification Service was established in 1996 and is the leading independent CPD accreditation institution operating across industry sectors to complement the CPD policies of professional and academic bodies.
When would you like to start?
Start straight away and join a global classroom of learners. If the course hasn’t started yet you’ll see the future date listed below.
Available now
Learning on this course
On every step of the course you can meet other learners, share your ideas and join in with active discussions in the comments.
What will you achieve?
By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to...
- Interpret why the media is so interested in reporting about food & nutrition, why the 'advice' changes so rapidly and the part we play in that, as readers.
- Explore the hierarchy of scientific evidence and judge for yourself whether you believe an example headline.
- Assess the biases you bring to what you read and gain a perspective into journalists' agendas which influence how they present scientific evidence.
- Develop an action plan for precision farming.
- Interpret scientific terms and make sense of statistics related to food and nutrition
- Identify where to find reliable information about food and nutrition and use tools that help identify unreliable studies.
Who is the course for?
This course is designed for anyone who is losing trust in media headlines about how what we eat affects our health and who wants to get to the truth.
If you’re looking to expand your knowledge on this topic, you might also find of interest the following EIT Food courses on food, nutrition and science communication:
Who will you learn with?
Dr Jing Guo is a Registered Nutritionist. She has great experience in teaching Food Science and Nutrition and has led several research projects including different types of studies.
I am a consumer researcher at Technical University of Munich. My research focuses on cognitive aspects and cultural influences on food choices and nutrition behavior.
Dr Miriam Clegg is a Lecturer and Researcher in Nutritional Sciences and a Registered Nutritionist. She researches appetite and nutritional health across the life-course.
I am a Senior Manager at the European Food Information Council. My role is creating science-based content on nutrition and health whilst leading communication activities for EU research projects.
Who developed the course?
EIT Food
EIT Food is Europe’s leading food initiative, working to make the food system more sustainable, healthy and trusted.
University of Reading
The University of Reading has a reputation for excellence in teaching, research and enterprise.
Endorsers and supporters
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Ways to learn | Buy this course | Subscribe & save | Limited access |
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| Choose the best way to learn for you! | $54/one-off payment | $39.99 For your first month. Automatically renews | Free |
| Fulfill your current learning need | Develop skills to further your career | Sample the course materials | |
| Access to this course | tick | tick | Access expires 2 Jan 2025 |
| Access to 1,000+ courses | cross | tick | cross |
| Learn at your own pace | tick | tick | cross |
| Discuss your learning in comments | tick | tick | tick |
| Tests to check your learning | tick | tick | cross |
| Certificate when you're eligible | Printed and digital | Digital only | cross |
Cancel for free anytime |
Ways to learn
Choose the best way to learn for you!
Subscribe & save
$39.99
For your first month. Automatically renews
Develop skills to further your career
- Access to this course
- Access to 1,000+ courses
- Learn at your own pace
- Discuss your learning in comments
- Tests to boost your learning
- Digital certificate when you're eligible
Cancel for free anytime
Buy this course
$54/one-off payment
Fulfill your current learning need
- Access to this course
- Learn at your own pace
- Discuss your learning in comments
- Tests to boost your learning
- Printed and digital certificate when you’re eligible
Limited access
Free
Sample the course materials
- Access expires 2 Jan 2025
Find out more about certificates, Unlimited or buying a course (Upgrades) Sale price available until 29 December 2024 at 23:59 (UTC). T&Cs apply. | |||
Find out more about certificates, Unlimited or buying a course (Upgrades)
Sale price available until 29 December 2024 at 23:59 (UTC). T&Cs apply.
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