We are living in a time when it seems that all the conditions have come together for misinformation in the area of food and nutrition.
There is a growing interest in the topic of nutrition as a determinant of our health. And a model of science journalism and communication that feeds on breaking news, where the internet and, in particular, social media, are the protagonists. All these factors allow for greater circulation of information, but quality information is not always the norm, and even less so is its validation by independent sources.
It is urgent to create spaces for reflection and dissemination of credible information in this area, and also to create mechanisms that allow for critical analysis and evaluation of the information that circulates among thousands of people without any filter.
FCNAUP and the University of Porto, with the support of DGS, aim to combat misinformation in the field of nutrition through "Thinking Nutrition". Inspired by fact-checking , "Thinking Nutrition", through FCNAUP professors, researchers and alumni, proposes to conduct a critical analysis of selected facts that are shaping daily life in the field of nutrition.
The nutritional fact-checking texts from "Pensar Nutrição" are structured as follows:
- Brief context and central issue to be addressed, prompted by recent news.
- Analysis of the fact(s) based on scientific evidence
- Final verdict (brief description of the conclusion) based on a classification system
Classification system of the fact(s)
The final verdict is based on a classification system with three different categories: "True," "Inaccurate," and "False.".
True – Current scientific evidence supports this claim.
Inaccurate – There is still no robust scientific evidence to support the claim, or there is no adequate framework to consider the claim true.
False – Current scientific evidence does not support this claim.
all of our fact-checking at this link