So, which is it?

I've been encountering several contradictory articles lately regarding food. A few examples:

• One article stating that if you skip meals or go more than six hours without eating, you'll sabotage all weight loss efforts because your body will think it's starving and hang on to all available fat with a vengeance, and another article stating that skipping occasional meals is actually an effective way to lose weight and will not harm your metabolism in the least.
• General articles and advice that recommend consuming skim or non-fat dairy products and another article discussing recent studies that suggest dairy fat may help with reducing/controlling blood pressure.
• The general advice that everyone should drink eight 8-ounce glasses of water every day, and an article that states everyone should drink eight 8-ounce servings of any beverages, which could include diet soda and coffee/tea.
• Not to mention the different reports on high fructose corn syrup ... is it poison that wreaks havoc on our bodies or simply another form of (cheap) sugar that is no different from glucose?

Easy to see why I didn't want to work in dietetics for the rest of my life.

Of course, I tend to agree with the advice that sounds the yummiest and easiest for me to follow. If a study came out suggesting that frosted sugar cookies may help reduce anything that can be bad in life, I would be happy.