NIH (National Institute of Health) put together MedlinePlus which helps people evaluate internet health related websites. They have compiled lists of topics that people should be looking for when they are reading about health care online. The problem is that many medical website on the internet do not contain medically accurate information and this is dangerous to the general public. Following guidelines such as listed on the link below can help people stay clear of medical information that may do more harm than good.

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/healthywebsurfing.html

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Carolyn B. As a medical/consumer health librarian, I am so glad that you have included the link to MedlinePlus' guide to healthy websurfing! I try to get our patients and families to use MedlinePlus and other credible websites to find health information.

10/21/11  •  Votes (0)

Rod G. thanks! yes, I always recommend people to use these types of sites for more reliable health information. The community I'm sure would love to read more about the sites you think are valuable with your health background.

10/27/11  •  Votes (0)

I have an orphan autoinflammatory disease. NIH is doing new research on it all the time. It puts out reports delineating what medications those of us who have this disease should never take, reports about other symptoms this orphan disease causes, and talks about what other diseases seem to be more common among those of us who have this disease. A lifesaver in my book.