Article Review: Lettuce Try Not to Panic by Jim Prevor
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Article Review: Lettuce Try Not to Panic by Jim Prevor
In his article that was published by The Wall Street Journal on November 29, 2018, Lettuce Try Not to Panic, Jim Prevor shows how the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) overstated the health condition by declaring E. coli as an outbreak in October 2018 yet only 43 cases had been reported. As a consequence, CDC encouraged the consumers not to consume romaine lettuce until the so-called E. coli outbreak was over. CDC interviewed 25 people out of 43 people who were believed to have been infected. 88 percent of 25 people with E. coli strain stated that they had eaten lettuce as compared to 47 percent of healthy people who were also interviewed. Based on the significant margin between the two groups, the CDC concluded that there was E. coli outbreak that was caused by the consumption of romaine lettuce and it, therefore, encouraged consumers not consume the product.
I choose this article because it shows how government agencies can make errors that can adversely affect a firm. Data was collected to show that CDC’s overstated the issue by declaring E. coli condition as an outbreak and yet only 43 cases were identified and against a population of 326 million people. There was no professional source that is cited, but the methods used can be replicated, and the data is accurate and consistent. An expert is cited, but the scientific community cannot accept the information given since it has no scientific grounds.
The take away from this article is that CDC sometimes causes unnecessary panic among the consumers by declaring a condition a health hazard and yet it is far away below from an alarming level and by prohibiting the consumption of certain products. In contrast, the probability of getting infected after consumption is extremely low. CDC overstated the problem by linking the consumption of romaine lettuce with E. Colli outbreak, and the decision to ban the product temporally was unwarranted. The knowledge of biostatistics has facilitated the comprehension of the issue being explored in the article by using statistics to support the claim made. The article does not approach the standards expected in the professional literature for failing to quote factual and statistical information used.
References
Prevor, J. (2018, November 29). Lettuce try not to Panic. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved from https://www.wsj.com/articles/lettuce-try-not-to-panic-1543534658.