Team Assignment
SCI/220 Human Nutrition
May 19, 2014
Double Blind Study- Study One
This (study one) was not well controlled since there was no real basis for the experiment. By that we mean that there were no defined age groups, no dietary comparisons (just that they did not change their diets during this period) and no examination of the overall health of the participants, life style and if they took vitamin/mineral supplements daily. So the groups were compared as being as general as "human V human", which a very random selection is indeed. We suspect that this method being repeated would result in ongoing different outcomes Double blind refers to (generally) human trials where neither the scientists nor the participants know who belongs to which group until the end i.e. in this instance, participants would not know if they were taking a placebo or an actual Vitamin C pill and scientists would not know who belonged to either group. This lessens the preconceptions, and also means that participants are not influenced by what they "think" they are taking. As a team, we don't believe that there is any evidence here, either way, to show that it would be a good or bad thing to take Vitamin C in the winter. Note: not from general research, but based solely on the circumstances as described here.
Study Two Study two was a controlled study. Every facet of the study was controlled to the fullest capability. All the people studied were put in a house for two weeks. Ten people received a placebo and 10 a supplement containing 1,000mg of vitamin C. All the subjects were monitored by a physician. The fact that the people were both put in similar controlled environments and that a doctor could study made it a controlled study. Based on the study, there is no indication that a person will be able to prevent a cold. By taking the vitamin C, the study group found that a person could take the supplement that resulted in a milder