Trials

Randomized, controlled trials are considered the gold standard of scientific research. Such trials include a control group, people who are observed but receive no treatment of any kind, and an intervention group, people who receive a certain treatment, such as a dietary supplement. Members of the control and intervention groups are similar in age, sex, ethnicity, marital status, socioeconomic status, health status, and diet and are randomly assigned to the respective groups. The power of such a trial is that it controls for any variation between the two groups, so that the only relevant difference is that the intervention group receives the specific treatment. Thus, any difference in the outcomes between the control and intervention groups is likely attributable to the intervention.