Truth in Magazines

photo credit.

I've been a long-time reader of all kinds of magazines.

As a little kid, I read Highlights. As an elementary schooler, it was American Girl magazine. My middle- and high school years brought Seventeen, Teen Vogue and the now-deceased but much-loved Jane.

College (i.e. now) equals Time, Self, Glamour, Shape, the odd design magazine from Borders, things I borrow from friends and whatever my mom has lying around on my weekends at home. I love magazines and I attribute my long-standing interest in writing, journalism and design to these publications.

So it was a thrill when the Men's Health fitness director and author of the Big Book of Exercises, Adam Campbell, video-chatted with my Health and Fitness writing class yesterday.

Campbell was a well-spoken, well-informed writer and editor, and he brought up some interesting points. Namely that there is a LOT of bad health writing out there.

Whether misleading, misrepresented or just incorrect, poor science journalism can be hazardous to the public health (no pun intended.) It's our job as journalists to go back to the original scientific studies, learn and understand the material well and present it in a form that readers will comprehend.

I personally read voraciously, and a lot of what I read health- and fitness-wise sticks with me. It alarms me a bit to think that all of the health tidbits I've stashed in my brain over the years may not be as accurate as I want to believe.

But Campbell said something that really rang true: when asked what health ideas he subscribes to, Campbell answered that he used common sense and moderation in all things. Sugar and fat aren't bad for you if you consume them in small doses and balance them with other health choices.

It's nice to know that one of the brains behind a leading fitness magazine really has his priorities in place--producing strong, accurate journalism rooted in science. Definitely something to look up to.