LibGuides: Consumer Health: Evaluating Health Information

Evaluating Health Information

A lot of misleading health information is published in books and magazines and featured on TV and the web. It's important to get health information from trusted resources. When reading health information, it's also helpful to ask yourself questions about the source of the health information.

Evaluating Online Health Information

Graphic designed by Immunize Kansas Coalition.

Sources to Evaluate Health Information

Medline Plus Evaluating Health Information
Medline Plus's collection of reliable resources for evaluating health information.
Evaluating Health Information Tutorial
Click on "Start the Tutorial" to watch the National Library of Medicine's video on evaluating health information.
Using Trusted Resources
The National Cancer Institute's guide to evaluating health information.
Evaluating Health on the Net (HON)
Health On the Net, a non for profit organization, promotes transparent and reliable health information online.
Evaluating Web-Based Health Resources (Nat'l Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine)
When you visit a site for the first time, it's important to evaluate how reliable it is. This short guide outlines things to consider in your evaluation.

Teaching Resources

Despite being "digital natives", the current generation of children, adolescents, and young adults often lack the skills to understand and appraise health information they've accessed on the internet. Below are some links to tools to help younger age groups inspect and assess health resources online.

Navigating the Health Care System - A four-unit health literacy curriculum designed by Nemours Children’s Health System for use with young adults. It is designed to prepare high school and college-age teens to be responsible for managing their own health care as they transition into adulthood. Materials are suitable for in-class, in-home, after-school, and community settings, and can be taught virtually.
Health Information Literacy Outreach - A Curriculum for Improving Health Information Literacy of 6th Grade Children from the National Library of Medicine
Characteristics of an Effective Health Education Curriculum - A guideline from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on what makes an effective health education curriculum.