How we research.
Hearth writes practical, research-backed guides for a calmer home and everyday life. Here is how we choose what we read, how we turn it into an article, and what we will not claim.
1. What we do.
We start from a real question a reader might ask, then read the published research and reputable expert writing on it. We summarize what the evidence actually says, note where researchers agree and where they don't, and write it up in plain language. Every factual claim in an article links to the source it came from.
2. What we don't do.
- We do not invent statistics or present opinion as if it were evidence.
- We do not publish sponsored writing dressed up as editorial.
- We do not overstate. When the research is thin or mixed, we say so.
3. How we cite.
Articles that make research claims carry a reference list of the studies and papers behind them, with authors, dates, and a link to the original. Outbound links go to those sources, so a reader can always check our work against the primary material.
4. How we update.
Every article carries a "last researched" date. We revisit a piece when new research changes the picture, when guidance shifts, or when a reader points out something we got wrong.
5. The sources we read.
We work from a clear hierarchy. Peer-reviewed papers come first, and we cite them by name with a link to the original in the reference list. Reputable expert writing from clinicians, scientists, and established institutions sits below that; we name those sources in the prose but do not always link out to them. To keep citations trustworthy, links in the reference list are limited to an allowlist of scientific and academic domains, so a reader following a source lands on primary material rather than a marketing page.
6. About the bylines.
Articles are published under named editorial personas, each with a defined beat. A byline here is a consistent voice for a topic, not a claim that a specific individual personally conducted the research. This is the honest framing for a small, solo-operated project: the persona signals who the writing is for and how it is approached, while the methodology on this page is what actually stands behind every claim. You can read more on our about page.