Free Nutrition Information on the Web Essay Sample
To ensure that the information accessed through the internet is trustworthy and accurate, the following steps must be taken into account while evaluating the quality of the information:
1. Since the internet contains information from a variety of sources, the first step will be to ask yourself what you are actually looking for. This will involve asking yourself whether you want facts, opinions, statistics, reasoned arguments or descriptions. One should also be clear about the purpose of the research (is it to get new ideas, to survey opinions, to find support for a factual or a reasoned argument). All this will help one to retrieve only sources that meet research goals more quick and accurately (France 2005).
2. One should select sources more likely to be reliable. A source that is reliable will have most of the following features (France 2005).
3. Determine credibility of the information. This requires one to look for features that make the site believable, try to find out how they get the information placed there and why the site should be believed over other sources. Credibility test of a source entails considering the following (France 2005) :
Lack of credibility will be indicated by author anonymity, misspelled words and lack of quality control (France 2005).
4. Check whether the information has evidence of quality control. This evidence will entail the following items:
5. Ensure that the information is comprehensive. This requires that the source should give a full account of claims or conclusions in a complete and accurate manner without leaving out important facts (Patricia 2006).
6. Ensure that the information is accurate. The following are some of the indicators that will reveal that a source is not accurate either in whole or in part (Patricia 2006):
7. Ensure that the information has reasonableness element. This test will involve testing the source for objectivity, fairness, moderateness and consistency (Patricia 2006).
8. Ensure that the information has consistency element. This requires that the argument or information does not contradict itself (Elizabeth 2006).
9. Ensure that the information has enough support. Support in this case includes sources and corroboration of the information. This is crucial if the information is about statistics and claims of fact. Information containing cited sources has high credibility (Elizabeth 2006).
10. Ensure that the source of information is well documented or has a bibliography (Elizabeth 2006).
Nutrition.gov web site is accurate and trustworthy because it meets the following elements:
1. It is operated by a credible body( national agriculture library, USAD)
2. Information in this site is from reliable and reputable sources for instance National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute; National Cholesterol Education Program and National Institute on Aging.
3. The web site is also credible because it provides easy online access to government information. The credibility element also comes in because the information provided is from reputable government institutions and research organs.
4. Information (articles) in this site is comprehensive and perfectly satisfies the accuracy test criteria.
5. In addition to being consistent, Information in this site has reasonableness element
6. Information contained in this site has a solid support from credible research institutions and from well reputed individuals.
7. All information and articles about nutrition found in this site are well documented