GAINESVILLE, Fla. — If you’re like most people, you’ve gone online to find out what’s causing that ringing in your ears or whether a gluten-free diet is worth considering. Be careful.
University of Florida researchers have found that, as with so much on the Internet, the quality of the information you dig up may depend on what you ask for and the results could be hazardous to your health.
The researchers discovered that Web searches related to the diagnosis and treatment of physical disease or injuries tend to yield higher-quality information than online searches for preventive health and social health information. The findings appeared in the January issue of the journal Decision Support Systems.
A search for the word “health” returned first-page results from well-respected health care providers, for example, while a search for “newborn vaccines” yielded hits for blogs and forums that discuss delaying or refusing medically recommended vaccinations. So when it comes to health information, search results may vary.
READ FULL ARTICLE to find out how to understand your search results fromthe University of FloridaNewsUNIVERSITY of FLORIDA
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