Hi Everyone...
Here is a good piece to keep in mind the difference between "Cause & Effect" (Experiment) vs "Related" (Correlation). Check this link out which discusses a longitudinal study where those who drank more than 4 cans of soda with artificial sweetener a day were 30% more likely to be depressed. Make sure you also look at the age range of those in the study and how many participants! Can you think of another variable which might be increasing both depression and diet soda drinking? Hmmm?
Now this is not saying there actually may be a cause & effect but an experiment would be needed to draw that conclusion. Am I saying, go ahead an consume artificial sweeteners? No! In fact, do make sure you look at the research on them by Dr. Susan Swithers (81/2 min NPR interview).
