People are always looking for the next "superfood" that will cure all of our health problems. But kimchi, a simple Korean side dish, has been making waves in the science community without anyone noticing. Long known for its strong tastes and good for you gut health, kimchi is now getting a lot of attention for a reason that might surprise you: it might help fight fat. Before you start filling your plate full of this fermented treat, though, let's get down to the details of what new study says.
Ok, so there are a few problems with this study which make it unfit to rely on.
First, this is observational, not an intervention. Everyone who has kimchi knows they are doing so and has chosen to do so on their own. The direction if causation cannot be established in this case because of this study design.
Second, this relies on food surveys. These are notoriously unreliable for getting true data about what a person has consumed anything more than a day ago. People really do have trouble remembering exactly what they ate yesterday unless they eat a regimented diet and even those people are bad at remembering deviations like incomplete meals or serving a larger size.
Third, what is a serving size? Eating 1-2 serves of kimchi means something very different if it is a 20g or 60g serve.
Fourth, was this the study question at the outset? Were they testing the hypothesis that kimchi consumption is directly tied to waist circumference? Not as far as the study seems to suggest. It seems like the participants did their food surveys and he researchers went through and found anything that stuck out in the data. This is basically a form of p hacking and is a major red flag.
Honestly, this study is trash and should be ignored. They have proven nothing, made no progress for a scientific understanding of diet, and wasted everyone’s time.
Ok, so there are a few problems with this study which make it unfit to rely on.
First, this is observational, not an intervention. Everyone who has kimchi knows they are doing so and has chosen to do so on their own. The direction if causation cannot be established in this case because of this study design.
Second, this relies on food surveys. These are notoriously unreliable for getting true data about what a person has consumed anything more than a day ago. People really do have trouble remembering exactly what they ate yesterday unless they eat a regimented diet and even those people are bad at remembering deviations like incomplete meals or serving a larger size.
Third, what is a serving size? Eating 1-2 serves of kimchi means something very different if it is a 20g or 60g serve.
Fourth, was this the study question at the outset? Were they testing the hypothesis that kimchi consumption is directly tied to waist circumference? Not as far as the study seems to suggest. It seems like the participants did their food surveys and he researchers went through and found anything that stuck out in the data. This is basically a form of p hacking and is a major red flag.
Honestly, this study is trash and should be ignored. They have proven nothing, made no progress for a scientific understanding of diet, and wasted everyone’s time.