Fizzy Drinks May Make Teens Explode
Maryclare Kastelic
Article Summary
This article was written by Kristina Fiore, a writer at MedPage Today. The article was published October 24th, 2011 at everydayhealth.com. The article states that children and teenagers who drink five or more cans of soda per week are more likely to be violent with their friends and family, or carry a weapon. The article infers that the sugar or caffeine content in the soda could be the cause of this. The author references a survey that was done to test this theory in Boston public high schools. They asked 1,878 students about how often they drank soda and if they carried a weapon or engaged in violence. Thirty percent of these students reported drinking more than five cans of soda per week. The article simply states that the two researchers who conducted the survey concluded that those who drank more soda we more likely to engage in violence than those who drank less. The article also says that drinking soda has as much of an impact on violence as using tobacco or alcohol.
Article Critique
After reading this article, it is clear that it is not a credible source. The author, Kristina Fiore, holds a degree from NYU's Science, Health, & Environmental Reporting Program but is not a nutritionist and does not have any prior experience with nutrition in general. The article is sponsored by Everyday Health Media. The article is fairly well written but makes generalizations and inaccurately connects information. The study that is cited in the article is not at all a credible source of information. Both of the researchers who conducted the study have a PhD but the article does not mention what program they earned the PhD in. The survey that they conducted does not count as scientific evidence. Firstly, the survey asks students to self-report how much soda they drink and how violent they are. Most people in America under report their weight. Similarly, students are not likely to report how violent they are in a simple survey. This method was an inappropriate way to determine the connection of soda and violence. It does not at all take into account family background, abuse, socioeconomic status, or culture. A simple survey may serve as a starting point for researchers but should not be the basis on which they make their conclusion. Finally, for the author to state that soda has the same amount of impact on violence as tobacco or alcohol based on this research is foolish and extremely misleading. To find more valid information on this topic, readers should refer to a more credible source such as the National Institute of Health (www.NIH.gov).
Works Cited
Fiore, Kristina. "Fizzy Drinks May Make Teens Explode." EverydayHealth.com. 24 Oct. 2011. Web. 02 Apr. 2016.