Web Watch

Nutrition Forum, Jan, 2000

This month's ratings are by Stephen Barrett, M.D., board chairman of Quackwatch, Inc., which is working hard to improve the quality of health information on the Web. He now operates three Web sites: Quackwatch (http://www.quackwatch.com), Chirobase (http://www.chirobase.org), and MLM Watch (http://www.mlmwatch.org).

BEST

CBS HealthWatch (http://www.cbsmedcape.com), Medscape's new consumer site, has outstanding consumer information geared to three levels of understanding. Registration is necessary to access the "advanced" and "expert" levels. Registered users can monitor progress toward their health goals and can arrange for information on their favorite topics of interest to be available automatically.

The International Bibliographic Information on Dietary Supplements (IBIDS) database at http://www.dietary-supplements. info.nih.gov now has nearly 400,000 citations, some of which are not included in Medline. The database is a project of the NIH Office of Dietary Supplements in partnership with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food and Nutrition Information Center.

WORST

Quixtar (http://www.quixtar.com), Amway Corporation's new site, includes a 60-question online "health assessment" that provides "personalized product recommendations" for NUTRILITE[R] products. Respondents who indicate that they eat well may be congratulated for "an incredible job of meeting your nutritional needs in this specific area." However, indicating concern about various body functions will trigger recommendations for products alleged to help those functions. Many such recommendations are inappropriate. To locate the health-assessment form, click "My Assessment" in the "Reference Desk" column, on the site-map page.

VitalCast http://www.vitalcast.com provides a large amount of misinformation about "alternative" methods. Its offerings include an online magazine (Vital Living) and many syndicated radio broadcasts that can be downloaded.

Nutri-Kids.com (http://www.nutri-kids. com) promotes Rexall Showcase International's Nutri-Kids School-Aid, "a protein and multivitamin- and mineral-enriched supplement drink mix to be used as an adjunct to your children's breakfast." Pediatician William Sears, MD, who helped develop the product, claims it contains "many ingredients that have been scientifically shown to help children concentrate and maintain their focus."