The phrase "do your own research" has become increasingly popular in discussions about health, fitness, and nutrition online. While this phrase stems from an admirable desire for informed decision-making, the reality of engaging with scientific literature presents significant challenges that many people underestimate.
This article explores these challenges, offers practical starting points for those genuinely interested in starting to engage with research, and provides guidance on avoiding common pitfalls.
Most people face substantial barriers when attempting to read and understand scientific research. These barriers exist not because of any intellectual shortcoming, but because engaging with peer-reviewed literature requires specialized skills rarely taught outside of college-level science courses not to mention the paywalls from publishers on many articles.
Peer review is the process where independent experts evaluate research papers before publication to ensure quality and validity. However, this rigorous process creates content written by scientists for other scientists.
Scientific papers follow specific formats and use technical language that assumes readers have foundational knowledge. Terms like muscle protein synthesis (the process by which cells build new muscle proteins), muscle hypertrophy (increasing muscle size), and metabolic flexibility (the body's ability to switch between different fuel sources) appear throughout the literature but these are specialized terms scientists typically use that are different from plain language the general population uses to describe the same processes. The examples we used above may be more common to be relatable but most language used in studies is even more specialized.
The challenge becomes even more obviouse because there is no clear starting point for the average person who wants to learn these skills. Unlike other subjects where introductory materials are readily available, scientific literacy requires understanding multiple layers of knowledge simultaneously.
Defining the problem:
When people decide to investigate health claims themselves, they often discover that scientific research is not designed for casual reading. It’s dense. Research papers assume readers understand experimental designs, can interpret statistical findings, recognize potential biases, and evaluate the strength of evidence.
Without this background, distinguishing between robust findings and preliminary observations becomes incredibly difficult but don't be discouraged if research papers feel impenetrable at first! Recognizing the challenge is the first step toward becoming a more informed consumer of science. This is also something that is possible to learn, but it will take time and it may require taking specialized courses, and you may want to find someone in the field that you trust that has a research background like a professor.
Practical Starting Points for Evidence-Based Learning
Given these complexities, beginning your journey with sources specifically designed to translate scientific findings into accessible language is most practical even though it doesn't directly engage you with primary sources like individual studies (yet).
Trusted Institutional Sources
Reputable health organizations offer an excellent starting point for understanding current research. Institutions like the Mayo Clinic employ teams of medical professionals and scientists who rigorously review scientific literature to provide patient-friendly and consumer-friendly information.
In general look for sources that are typically:
Beginner Tip: You can copy/paste the references in some of these articles into google scholar and see if you can get access to the full article (not just the abstract summary). This will allow you to see the author's rationale for citing the study in their article and this is a great low-stakes way to start engaging.
For those ready to explore original research, Google Scholar provides an excellent search platform. When investigating topics of interest, add specific terms to identify the most reliable studies.
Search Strategy: Instead of searching "muscle growth," try "muscle hypertrophy” and then add even more parameters like ”muscle hypertrophy meta-analysis" or "muscle hypertrophy systematic review."
Why not go with searching 'muscle growth'? ‘Growth’ is accurate but most of the high quality literature uses standardized scientific terminology. In this case, ‘hypertrophy’ is the standard term for muscle growth that you will find in the peer review. As you engage with the literature more, you'll learn the scientific terminology that goes with your areas of interest.
Understanding Some Basic Study Types:
Leveraging AI as a Learning Tool
More recent updates to a variety of AI tools can serve as valuable learning companions when navigating complex research. You can upload research paper PDFs and ask AI to:
An important caveat is to think of AI as a "co-pilot," not a replacement for critical thinking. Keep in mind that AI tools can misinterpret or oversimplify studies, and may even generate inaccurate information at times. Always cross-check with original sources by reading over the study yourself after getting the summary or look for third-party expert summaries in the topic. It may sound like we just gave a lot of reasons not to use AI for this but we promise that it does make things more efficient and it can be a powerful tool within the correct context. For example, our flagship Innova Vita Health and Wellness course has an engineered prompt that helps AI bots break down the most important parts of a study for individual use by directing them in very specific ways.
Pro Tip: Use AI-generated summaries as stepping stones to develop your own understanding, not as final authorities to base your opinion on. Think of it in a similar way as 'Cliff Notes' but for individual studies instead of books.
Before we go any further: Remember the nuance in how we are using the word 'research' in this article. In this case we are talking very specifically about educating yourself further with high quality sources of information.
When investigating on your own, you may find sources claiming to be "research-based" lack the rigor of peer-reviewed studies. Popular health websites (especially .com websites), blogs, and social media accounts often present information that appears scientific but appeals to existing biases within a community rather than challenging readers with evidence. This is extremely common in the nutrition and exercise science space at all levels. These are the types of articles that should not be counted as 'doing your own research' as they may leave your overall understanding in a worse spot than before reading them.
Red Flags to Watch For:
While large industries do contribute to legitimate health concerns, attributing all health problems to deliberate corporate conspiracies oversimplifies complex issues and ignores more systemic issues impacting public health. Remember, the whole reason you got into wanting to ‘do your own research’ in the first place is, in part, to avoid these types of pitfalls in logic.
Reading research papers does not make someone an instant expert, but it represents a valuable step toward more informed decision-making. Be aware of the Dunning-Kruger effect—the tendency for people with limited knowledge to overestimate their understanding.
Initial exposure to research can create overconfidence while significant blind spots remain. While it is really exciting to start learning new things, maintaining appropriate humility when learning prevents jumping to overconfident conclusions. Reading a few studies provides only a narrow window into a much larger field of knowledge.
Build Foundational Knowledge: Consider taking introductory courses at community colleges or online in areas like basic statistics (if you already have a math background), biology, nutrition or exercise science. These provide essential foundational knowledge for understanding scientific literature. We also mention community college because they are generally cheaper than state universities and many have online courses as well that are facilitated by qualified faculty.
Develop Critical Thinking Skills: Learn to recognize the difference between correlation and causation, understand the importance of sample sizes, and appreciate why replication of findings matters. Learn about common logical fallacies and practice spotting them.
Use a Strategic Approach:
Scientific literacy for the individual starts with asking high quality questions, recognizing trustworthy sources, and staying open to learning new things. By starting with reputable organizations, building foundational knowledge, and approaching research with appropriate expectations and curiosity, you can make more informed decisions about your health and fitness.
Your journey toward engaging with scientific literature is valuable and worthwhile but it won’t be easy. Focus on continuous improvement of your personal research skills and remember that even experts are always learning. Stay tuned for future articles and learning resources that will get more in-depth on this topic!
