How does the SDE Honesty Scale work?

The SDE Honesty Scale is a five-level evidence quality rating applied to every empirical claim in SDE content. The scale is designed for the standard that governs clinical cardiology decisions, where being wrong can be irreversible. Solid (1): robust and consistent evidence from large RCTs or multiple well-designed prospective cohort studies with cardiovascular outcomes. Promising (2): good evidence with some uncertainty, typically cohort data, mechanistic studies, or smaller RCTs with surrogate endpoints. Early (3): preliminary signals, biologically plausible, needs replication before clinical guidance. Theoretical (4): mechanistic rationale, limited human data, not ready for clinical recommendation. Unsupported (5): the claim exceeds its evidence base, regardless of how confidently or widely it is stated.

The scale is applied consistently: when the JUPITER trial data makes hs-CRP above 2.0 mg/L an indication for statin therapy in intermediate-risk men, that earns Solid (1). When a supplement company claims its adaptogen blend "supports cardiovascular health," that earns Unsupported (5) unless specific cardiovascular outcome RCT data is cited. The scale does not adjust based on who is making the claim or how many people believe it.

What to do: When reading any health claim, on SDE or elsewhere, apply the scale framework mentally: what is the evidence level, what is the trial quality, and does the confidence of the claim match the strength of the evidence?