A group of older adults are gathered for their weekly computer class. They are learning to use the Internet to find health information. Maria's husband, who is 75, had a stroke the month before so she's searching the web for some basic facts about stroke rehabilitation. Walter, who is 68, has questions about what causes Alzheimer's disease because he thinks that's what his mother had. Shirley and Howard, married for 48 years, are trying to find out if the cataract surgery their eye doctor suggests really is as safe as he says. The whole group has one big worry—"How can we trust the health information we get on the Internet?"
There are thousands of health-related websites on the Internet. Some of the information on these websites is reliable. Some of it is not. Some of the information is current. Some of it is not. Choosing which website to trust is worth thinking about.
As a rule, health websites sponsored by Federal government agencies are good sources of health information. You can reach all Federal websites by visiting www.usa.gov. Large professional organizations and well-known medical schools may also be good sources of health information.
The main page of a website is called the home page. The home page shows you the features on the website. You should be able to spot the name of the sponsor of the website right away.
Places To StartThere are a few good places to start if you are looking for online health information. An excellent source of reliable information is the National Institutes of Health (www.nih.gov). You can start here to find information on almost every health topic, including:
In addition, you can visit the National Library of Medicine's Medline Plus (www.medlineplus.gov) for dependable information on more than 700 health-related topics. You can also visit NIHSeniorHealth.gov (www.nihseniorhealth.gov)—a website with health information designed specifically for older people. |
As you search online, you are likely to find websites for many health agencies and organizations that are not well-known. By answering the following questions you should be able to find more information about these websites. A lot of these details can be found under the heading, "About Us" or "Contact Us."
Use your common sense and good judgment when evaluating health information online. There are websites on nearly every conceivable health topic and no rules overseeing the quality of the information. Take a deep breath and think a bit before acting on any health information you find on the web. Don't count on any one website. If possible, check with several sources to confirm the accuracy of your results. And remember to talk with your doctor.
Here are some helpful Federal and non-Federal resources.
National Library of Medicine, Medline Plus
www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/healthywebsurfing.html
10 Questions to Help You Make Sense of Health Headlines
www.health-insight-harvard.org
Council of Better Business Bureaus
www.bbb.org
Medical Library Association
www.mlanet.org
QuackWatch
www.quackwatch.org
For information on health and aging, including the tip sheet, Understanding Risk: What Do Those Headlines Really Mean?, contact:
National Institute on Aging Information Center
P.O. Box 8057
Gaithersburg, MD 20898-8057
800-222-2225 (toll-free)
800-222-4225 (TTY/toll-free)
www.nia.nih.gov
www.nia.nih.gov/espanol
To order publications (in English or Spanish) or sign up for regular email alerts, visit www.nia.nih.gov/health.
Visit NIHSeniorHealth.gov (www.nihseniorhealth.gov), a senior-friendly website from the National Institute on Aging and the National Library of Medicine. This website has health information for older adults. There are also special features that make it simple to use. For example, you can click on a button to have the text read out loud or to make the type larger.
A Quick ChecklistYou can use the following checklist to help make sure that the health information you are reading online can be trusted. You might want to keep this checklist by your computer.
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National Institute on Aging
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
National Institutes of Health
Reprinted April 2007
Publication Date: April 2007
Page Last Updated: May 15, 2012