Focus on Communications: Communicating the Message: Clarifying the Controversies About Caffeine.
Today's "coffee culture" and the widespread availability of caffeine-containing foods and beverages fuel the ongoing study of caffeine and its subsequent coverage by the media. Although the media has become influential in communicating health and nutrition information to the public, coverage of emerging science, such as the study of caffeine, does not necessarily bring clarity or improved understanding for consumers. This article highlights the current knowledge of caffeine's effects on health, with emphasis on the most common areas of interest and confusion. To address persistent misperceptions about caffeine, this article also accentuates the need for nutrition professionals to help put the findings of caffeine research into perspective and suggests practical ways to do this.
Hogan
Edith Howard
EH
Nutrition Consulting Services, Washington, DC; Food, Nutrition & Health Communications, Poplar Grove, Ill; and the International Food Information Council, Washington, DC.; Edith Howard Hogan, RD, LD, is the owner of Nutrition Consulting Services on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, where she provides private and corporate clients with nutrition counseling and nutritional expertise. She has been actively involved in nutrition and food issues, including caffeine and food safety. In addition to her longstanding involvement with the ADA and her local district, she currently serves as an ADA national media spokesperson and makes frequent radio and television appearances. In the last 2 years she has conducted more than 100 print, radio, and television interviews on caffeine.; Betsy Hornick, MS, RD, LD, is a nutrition writer and consultant based in Poplar Grove, Ill. She is also a state media representative for the Illinois Dietetic Association.; Ann Bouchoux, MSW, is a director of communications for the International Food Information Council.
Hornick
Betsy A.
BA
Bouchoux
Ann
A