Research 101 Understanding Medical Research
You don't want to rely on other people's opinions. So how do you actually read and interpret researc
Identifying Good Research
Research on products is the best way to know if something actually works- but how do you make sense of all of the scientific jargon? How do you know if the research was actually good research? We can help you make sense of all of this! There are a LOT of things to consider in deciding what research is actually good research. Unfortunately, it is very easy to get statistics that make seem like things are associated with each other, even though they are not. I love the website https://www.tylervigen.com/spurious-correlations. It's the perfect example of correlation not meaning causation. So it's important to assess whether the research you are looking at actually means something.
One of the best places to start is by looking at a website called Pubmed. If a research study is credible, it is likely to be in this database- however, that doesn't mean that all of the research in there is high quality. The site itself is free, but the actual journal article may not be.
It's understandable that you may not feel like reading the actual science papers. But you should be careful about who you believe when it comes to your beauty advice. Do they have a science degree? Do they know a lot about scientific research? Anybody is allowed to give advice- but it doesn't mean the advice is good. You can read the National Institute of Health (NIH) guide to figuring out what sites you can trust.
What to look for in a research study
Study Design
What is the study design? The hallmark of research is making comparisons between groups. For example, if you want to assess whether green tea extract is good for the skin, there should be a group of people who use this product, and a group that does not use the product. It doesn't make as much sense to only look at people who use green tea extract and say the product worked...because maybe people who didn't use the product would have same the same results, but you never checked. Also, Are the comparison groups randomized? That is, was a researcher able to place people into the study groups randomly and without bias?
Sample Size
What is the sample size of the research population? This is an important one. If there aren't enough people in a study, it is hard to get real statistics. Statistics doesn't just mean throwing out percentages. For example, it is not enough to say 20% of people who used green tea extract reported having smoother skin, where only 15% of the people who didn't use green tea extract reported having smoother skin, and there green tea extract works. There needs to be some deciding factor that tells you whether or not 15% vs 20% is actually a significant difference. In scientific research, this factor is called a p-value. The p-value is a number that helps you decide whether are not you have a significant result. In research involving people, it is generally good when this number is under 0.5.
Study Population
What is the ethnic make-up of the study population? What is the gender make-up? What is the age range? Is the population studied all Caucasian, US, European, etc? This is a big thing. If a study was done on all Caucasian males, it is pretty hard to say that the results are relevant to an African American female.
Actual Product Tested
What is the actual product that was tested? And do all of the studies out there use exactly the same product? One research study may have used a cream that has green tea extract, hyaluronic acid and argan oil, and claim that their study shows green tea extract works. The next study uses a cream that has green tea extract, cocoa butter and jojoba oil, and their study shows that green tea extract doesn't work. The problem is that the positive results in the first study may have come from hyaluronic acid and has nothing to do with the green tea extract.
Results
What does the actual result say? And this, of course, is the bottom line. If everything else checks out, you need to look at the result and see what it actually says. This isn't as easy as it seems. But this is why we are here- to help interpret results!
What about Anecdotes?
Anecdotes aren't worthless. There are a lot of ingredients that have been used for centuries in different cultures that simply haven't been researched. That doesn't mean the ingredient isn't good. But it is important to realize that an anecdote is just an anecdote- you need to take it with a grain of salt. Trusting your neighbor who tells you they like to smear toothpaste all over their face because it improves their skin texture is not a great idea, particularly if they have no science background. There is neither a cultural background nor science background to that practice. So be skeptical about the beauty advice you get!