A fantastic illustration, via Gary Taubes, of the spirit of nutrition science. Hilarious (if you forget the consequences of it all for a moment). Critics should use it as a prime exhibit from now on.

What happened? Observational studies suggest that a certain Mediterranean diet helps protect from cognitive decline. But note that "officially healthy" food will always do well in such studies, because it is health-conscious people that eat it. Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) are needed, and here we had a major one --- which failed to confirm the hypothesis, as is always the case for major RCTs of "officially healthy" diets as far as I know.

How to react? Well, the trial lasted three years. So, we have the following takeaway. The trial outcome "shows" that the benefits come only after that timespan. Let me restack the first sentence of the press release, quoted by Taubes: