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Nutrition préventive

Relative Risk

Ratio comparing the probability of disease between two groups (exposed and non-exposed).

Definition

The relative risk (RR) compares the probability that a health event occurs in an exposed group versus a non-exposed group.

How it works

Relative risk is a fundamental epidemiological indicator for evaluating the impact of nutritional exposure on health. An RR of 1 means there is no difference between the groups, an RR > 1 indicates an increased risk, and an RR < 1 shows a reduced risk.

Role

Evaluates the association between a nutritional exposure and disease in epidemiological studies.

Examples

  • A RR of 1.5 for diabetes with high consumption of sugary drinks
  • A RR of 0.8 for cardiovascular diseases with Mediterranean diet

Recommendations

Interpret the RR considering the confidence interval and the quality of the study. Use the RR in addition to other association measures for a complete evaluation. Be cautious with small sample sizes that can produce unstable estimates.

Key takeaway

Relative risk quantifies how many times more (or less) likely a disease is among the exposed compared to the non-exposed.

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