Internet Guide to Medical Diets and Nutrition

Citation

Doldi, L. (2007), "Internet Guide to Medical Diets and Nutrition", Online Information Review, Vol. 31 No. 4, pp. 544-545. https://doi.org/10.1108/14684520710780539

The internet has effectively become a source of information in almost every field of human activity, for it offers a massive number of sites on all possible topics. With such a quantity of information it becomes essential to have good navigation through the different websites. This book proposes itself as a guide to navigate through the specific field of diet‐ and nutrition‐related subjects.

Two categories of readers are addressed by this book: the occasional internet user, who could find himself disoriented by the amount of information; and the professional user, interested in enhancing his proficiency on this specific topic. The first three chapters of the book are addressed especially to the first group of readers. Here some basic concepts are discussed, such as the difference between the internet and the web; the nature of the main search engines is described; some netiquette conventions and tips on evaluating quality of retrieved information are given.

After this short introduction to the internet and to its elementary rules, the following ten chapters address a wider public, including information professionals, and focus on a description of diet‐ and nutrition‐related websites. Each chapter presents a different aspect of diets and nutrition. For instance, the reader will find reference to sites treating general aspects of diets and nutrition (chapters 4 and 5), websites on weight loss (chapters 6 and 7), on diets and nutrition related to medical problems and conditions (chapter 8) and on diets that originate from religious or philosophical beliefs (chapter 9). Chapters 10 and 11 are dedicated to websites and discussion groups on food recipes, and finally chapter 12 discusses careers opportunities in nutrition and dietetics.

The URL address is reported for each site, and a concise description summarises the nature, the authors and the mission of the site itself. Most of the websites described in the book are authoritative and often sponsored by important institutions such as the US Department of Agriculture or the National Academy of Science. This helps ensure longevity of the information content of this book, because these web pages will most likely be regularly updated by the respective institutions.

The number of sites listed in the book and the specificity of some of them make the book a valuable instrument for health consumer, health professional and information professionals. Consumers and health professionals will find here the appropriate site for each specific situation. Information professionals will find a gateway to comprehensive, mostly authoritatively information. There is only one shortcoming: the book has a strong American angle and not all sites are fully valuable for non‐American users.