October is Health Literacy Month, and these days much of our health information comes from a search bar or a social media feed. Healthy People 2030 describes personal health literacy as the ability to find, understand and use health information and services to make decisions for yourself and others. Finding information is easy; judging it is the hard part.
Five questions to ask about any health website
- Who runs it? A trustworthy site makes clear who is behind it and how to contact them. In the U.S., websites ending in .gov belong to official government organizations.
- What is its purpose? The goal should be to inform you. If the site sells a product it is also praising, be careful.
- Where does the information come from? Good pages point to research or name their sources, and they present balanced facts rather than promising cures.
- Is it up to date? Look for when the page was written, reviewed or updated.
- What happens to your information? A reliable site explains its privacy policy.
Red flags
- Miracle cures or "what doctors don't want you to know"
- Personal stories in place of evidence
- Pressure to buy now, or a product sold on the same page
- Advice to stop a treatment your provider recommended
Ready to Get Started?
Primary care, mental health, and addiction medicine in one practice. New patients are often able to be scheduled within a week of requesting an appointment.
Good places to start
MedlinePlus, from the National Library of Medicine, the CDC, the National Institutes of Health, medical schools and large nonprofit health organizations are generally reliable. Our own blog lists its sources at the end of each article.
Bring it to your visit
If you read something that worries you or sounds promising, bring it to your appointment. Your provider can tell you whether it applies to you, given your health history, and that conversation is part of good care.
Care from Hope Integrative Medicine
Bring your questions to your next visit and we will go through them with you. We see adults in person at our West Ashley office and by telehealth across South Carolina, with primary care and mental health care in one practice. New patients are often able to be scheduled within a week of requesting an appointment. Request an appointment.
Sources: MedlinePlus, Evaluating Health Information; Healthy People 2030, Health Literacy; Health Literacy Month.
This article is general health information and does not replace advice from your own provider.
Frequently Asked Questions
Check who runs it, whether it is selling something, where its information comes from, when it was last updated and whether it has a privacy policy.
Websites ending in .gov belong to official U.S. government organizations, such as the CDC, NIH and MedlinePlus, and are generally reliable starting points.
Bring it to your next visit. Your provider can explain whether it applies to you and your health history.