Researchers compared four diet types in laboratory mice and tracked two factors: average body fat (%) and average lifespan (months). Diet I (high-carb): fat 28%, lifespan 22; Diet II (high-fat): fat 35%, lifespan 19; Diet III (high-protein): fat 18%, lifespan 28; Diet IV (caloric restriction): fat 14%, lifespan 32. The researchers argued that lower body fat is consistently linked with longer lifespan in this sample. The strongest data support is ______
Which choice most logically completes the text using the data above?
- A
Diet I's intermediate values.
- Bcheck_circle
the inverse pattern: fat decreases from 35% to 14% as lifespan rises from 19 to 32 months across diets II, I, III, IV.
- C
the lowest fat (14%) under caloric restriction.
- D
the highest lifespan (32) under caloric restriction.
Explanation
"Consistently linked" requires showing the inverse pattern holds across the entire sample, not just in one case. Choice B captures the monotonic inverse trend across all four diets, the strongest evidence for a consistent link.