A Researcher Investigated Whether Following a Vegetarian Diet Could Help

Essay

A researcher investigated whether following a vegetarian diet could help to reduce blood pressure. For a
sample of 85 people who followed a vegetarian diet for 4 months, the mean systolic blood pressure was
124 mmHg and for a sample of 75 people who followed a nonvegetarian diet for 4 months, the mean systolic
blood pressure was 138 mmHg. Methods of statistics show that if a vegetarian diet had no effect on blood
pressure, there would be less than 1 chance in a 100 of getting these results. Does the result have statistical
significance? Why or why not? Does the result have practical significance?