In Act 2, Scene 2 of Romeo and Juliet, Juliet queries
What's in a name? That which we call a rose By any other name would smell as sweet; Juliet's point, of course, is that names mean nothing. And one would think that also would hold for science. But times... they are a changin'!
The new issue of the American Journal of Epidemiology contains a study with the title:
Exposure to Environmental Tobacco Smoke and Birth Outcome: Increased Effects on Pregnant Women Aged 30 years or Older. WHAT!?!?!?!?
Who's ever heard of a conclusion in the title of a scientific study? I've seen conclusions in newspaper headlines. But definitely NOT science!
For comparison, here are some other titles from the same issue of the American Journal of Epidemiology:
Effects of Cigarette Smoking, Caffeine Consumption and Alcohol Intake on Fecundability Household and Dwelling Contact as Risk Factors for Leprosy in Northern Malawi Neighborhood Environments and Coronary Heart Disease: A Multilevel Analysis Notice that none of these titles include conclusions! And the only thing worse than putting the conclusion in the title is putting an unjustified conclusion there.
In this study, exposure to secondhand smoke was ascertained by asking for a "yes/no" answer to the question: "Does anyone other than you (the pregnant woman) currently smoke cigarettes in the household?"
Is this a reliable way of ascertaining potential exposure to secondhand smoke? I think not. For example, a woman who lives in a smokefree environment, but works in a smoking environment, would answer "no" and incorrectly be classified as not being exposed to secondhand smoke. And who verified the responses in the first place? Answer: noone.
Also the study was biased in that it only included low-income women. And I would bet the low- income lifestyle probably has some influence on birth outcomes. Remember: wealth equals health!
This study was so inconclusive its authors even stated "We cannot exclude the possibility that factors other than ETS may explain the findings."
I wonder why they didn't put that sentence in the title!Material presented on this home page constitutes opinion of the author.
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