Method glossary

Mendelian randomization

Uses genetic variants as a 'natural lottery' to test cause and effect.

Source

'Mendelian randomization': can genetic epidemiology contribute to understanding environmental determinants of disease?
Davey Smith G, Ebrahim S. International Journal of Epidemiology 2003;32(1):1-22
10.1093/ije/dyg070

Where, in the source

the whole article — it is the one that names and defines the method

Checked at the source on

2026-08-10

Who wrote this

The wording of this entry is ours, written for people outside the field. The concept and its limits come from the source above, against which this wording is checked — it is neither a translation nor a copy of it.

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