Question

Researchers have collected data that shows a relationship between eating french fries and the risk of premature death. (See the Washington Post article here for more background.) Is it safe to assume, on the basis of these data, that eating french fries leads to premature death? Explain the rationale for your answer and include at least two alternative explanations for the reported results.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/food/wp/2017/06/16/those-french-fries-could-kill-you-a-new-study-says-but-dont-panic/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.4b17fa0c8676

Answer 1

Eating french fries linked to higher risk of death:

People who eat fried potatoes two or more times a week double their risk of an early death compared to those who avoid them. Eating potatoes that have not been fried was not linked to a similar early mortality risk.

In 2014, Americans consumed 112.1 pounds of potatoes per person, according to the National Potato Council. Of that total, 33.5 pounds were fresh potatoes, the remaining 78.5 pounds were processed. According to the US Department of Agriculture, the majority of processed potatoes Americans eat are French fries.

In 2014, Americans consumed 4,440 people aged 45 to 79 over a period of eight years to study osteoarthritis. This research team decided to momentarily set aside the main issue of osteoarthritis and look at participants’ consumption of potatoes.

Even though most of us may have assumed that fried potatoes could be unhealthy for us, there is “very limited” scientific data on this issue, Veronese explained in an email.

So the researchers divided study participants into subgroups based on how frequently they ate potatoes each week. Over the eight years, a total of 236 of the participants died. Analyzing the data for each group, those who ate fried potatoes two to three times each week doubled their chance of dying early compared to those who ate no fried potatoes.

Age or sex of participants did not influence the result, but the data showed men were more likely than women and younger participants were more likely than older participants to enjoy the fried food.

“Even if it is an observational study, we believe that the cooking oil, rich in trans-fat, is an important factor in explaining mortality in those eating more potatoes,” said Veronese. Trans fat has been shown to raise the “bad,” or LDL, cholesterol in the blood, which can lead to cardiovascular disease.

Yet, he also added that “other important factors,” including obesity, a sedentary lifestyle and use of high quantities of salt might also play a role in the early death of those eating two or more portions of fried potatoes each week.