Choosing the Right Epidemiology Study

Epidemiological study designs help scientists investigate how health conditions are distributed in populations and what may affect them. They are used to study the link between exposures and outcomes, and they are grouped into observational and experimental studies.

Observational studies do not i...

Consider an example of testing calcium's effect on a woman's bone weight.

In an ideal study design, the same woman would be observed in two scenarios—one in which she takes calcium supplements and one in which she does not.

Under these conditions, all biological aspects remain constant except for the calcium supplementation.