How we check facts

Health writing is easy to get wrong in small ways: a number remembered slightly off, a trial described as stronger than it was, a guideline quoted after it was replaced. This page sets out the habits we use to avoid that. They are habits, not guarantees, and they are the reason each essay ends with a list of its sources.

Where facts come from

Every figure, date, name and recommendation in an essay comes from a page the editors opened and read while writing it. We lean on national and international health bodies, government agencies, professional associations and peer-reviewed reviews. A fact that we could not find in a source we had opened was left out, even when it felt familiar. Where a page could not be sourced well, we made it shorter rather than fill it.

Sources are linked by publisher name so that you can see where a claim came from and open the page yourself. Links to sources are marked so that search engines do not treat them as endorsements. Where a source is a single study, we say so, because one study rarely settles anything.

How we describe evidence

We try to say what kind of evidence stands behind a statement. A guideline written by a national body after reviewing many trials is different from one small trial, and both are different from an observational finding that two things tend to occur together. Where the research is early, mixed or short, the essay says so in plain words, and words such as proven, cure and detox are avoided.

Notes on topics such as the gut-brain axis or omega-3 and mood are examples of places where the honest summary is that the picture is unsettled.

Health topics and caution

These are educational essays. We do not diagnose, recommend a treatment for an individual or interpret anyone's symptoms. Where a topic touches on risk, the essay names the signs that call for a clinician or urgent care, and reminds readers that their own clinician has the final word. Pages on mental health point to local emergency services and crisis lines.

No invented experience

The notes contain no testimonials, personal stories presented as fact, claimed credentials or tests run by us. The publication has not reviewed any reader's case and does not employ clinicians. If a sentence reads as if it came from lived experience, it is quoting a source and attributes it.

Updates and corrections

Each page carries the date it was last updated. When a guideline changes or a reader points out an error, we correct the page and change the date. Send corrections or suggested public sources through the contact page linked in the footer. Our general approach is described on the about page.

The short version

Read the source, report what it says, say how strong the evidence is, and fix mistakes openly. If a claim cannot be backed by a page we opened, it does not appear.