Evaluating Health Information

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• Summary
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• Related Issues
• Specifics

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Research

• Journal Articles

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• Older Adults
• Patient Handouts

Summary

Millions of consumers get health information from magazines, TV or the Internet. Some of the information is reliable and up to date; some is not. How can you tell the good from the bad?

First, consider the source. If you use the Web, look for an "about us" page. Check to see who runs the site: Is it a branch of the government, a university, a health organization, a hospital or a business? Focus on quality. Does the site have an editorial board? Is the information reviewed before it is posted? Be skeptical. Things that sound too good to be true often are. You want current, unbiased information based on research.

NIH: National Library of Medicine

Start Here

• Evaluating Internet Health Information: A Tutorial from the National Library of Medicine (National Library of Medicine)
• Finding and Evaluating Online Resources (National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health) Also in Spanish
• Health Information on the Web: Finding Reliable Information (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish
• MedlinePlus Guide to Healthy Web Surfing (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
• Trust It or Trash It? (Genetic Alliance) Also in Spanish
• Using Trusted Resources (National Cancer Institute) Also in Spanish

Related Issues

• Health Literacy: MedlinePlus Health Topic (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
• Miracle Health Claims (Federal Trade Commission) Also in Spanish
• Understanding Health Risks: Improve Your Chances for Good Health (National Institutes of Health) Also in Spanish

Specifics

• Cancer Information on the Internet (American Cancer Society)
• Deciphering Media Stories on Diet: Nutrition in the News (Harvard School of Public Health)
• Finding Reliable Health Information Online (National Human Genome Research Institute)
• Know the Science: The Facts about Health News Stories (National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health)

Videos and Tutorials

• Evaluating Internet Health Information: A Tutorial from the National Library of Medicine (National Library of Medicine)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

• Article: Health Literacy and Preventive Behaviors Modify the Association between Pre-Existing Health...
• Article: Readability of online COVID-19 health information: a comparison between four English...
• Article: Information in Spanish on the Internet about the Prevention of COVID-19.
• Evaluating Health Information -- see more articles

Find an Expert

• National Library of Medicine

Older Adults

• Online Health Information: Is It Reliable? (National Institute on Aging) Also in Spanish

Patient Handouts

• Online health information - what can you trust? (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish