Getting started in clinical nutrition research.

Conducting nutrition research projects does not require a large, well-funded laboratory and a team of assistants. The main requirement is an inquisitive, creative, and critical mind face to face with an unsolved problem. Nevertheless, the actual process of getting started in clinical nutrition research can present obstacles for the novice clinician that can impede successful implementation and completion of the project. This article reviews the initial steps involved in generating a hypothesis, study design, and preliminary data analysis.