Do you rely on the Internet about health information - when you are sick?

1. 65

   alexandriaruthkposted 12 years ago

   Do you rely on the Internet about health information - when you are sick?
   
   or other family members are sick?

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2. 78

   joanwzposted 12 years ago

   Yes and no. There are certainly a lot of sites with mediocre, poor, or unreliable information. But there are also some good sites. Three good sites that I have found are the Mayo Clinic site (http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/medical/HomePage), WebMD (http://www.webmd.com/), and eMedicine (http://www.emedicinehealth.com/script/main/hp.asp). I've also recently run across a site called Medscape, which I haven't had the opportunity to check into very deeply, but which seems like it might be a credible source of information (http://emedicine.medscape.com/).

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3. 85

   peachpurpleposted 12 years ago

   yes i do. Everytime my family members or me are / is sick, first thing i did was search for the problem at googles, find the solutions and medication. I would say, 80% works out well without visiting the doctor. Get those medications from pharmacy and saved the consultation fee. Thanks to the internet. Otherwise, i will go bankrupt!

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4. 86

   ChitrangadaSharanposted 12 years ago

   Nowadays for any problem, Internet provides the first reference and most of the times it is reliable. But if the problem is acute and serious, I do consult a doctor and have his advice.

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5. 66

   Neinahpetsposted 12 years ago

   Most definitely.  One of the first places I hit when I KNOW I'm sick but am not sure if it's serious enough to warrant a doctor's visit is WebMD.  If I can figure out what is going on I can look up things I can do to alleviate the symptoms, or rid myself entirely of them.

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   JimTxMillerposted 12 years ago

   I do not rely on any one source for information on any subject. The internet or any other data base is only as wise as the user.

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   number2sonposted 12 years ago

   Not really.  I don't get sick very often, and when I do, I just try to get better without medicine.

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8. 0

   Rayne123posted 12 years ago

   well I hate to admit it but yes sometimes I do. I always look up the causes of an illness or cold or any pain or such.
   
   The problem with the internet is that they tend to over exaggerate as they do with media stories. I use to read an organic site (natural remedies) cant off the top of my head remember the name of the site.
   
   However i was reading on peroxide for teeth cleaning. So I tried it as I do many things I read (not now) and I think I may have swallowed to much. I ended up in so much pain I thought I was having a heart attack. I had my granddaughter and had to get her parents to pick her up and stayed at my friends (she is a nurse) for the night. Well it ended up subsiding through the night.
   
   I did however go see my doctor, at the time I was not sure that the peroxide caused the pain . I told my doctor and yes it was the cause.
   
   Another time I read that white vinegar was good for your hair. So I diluted it with water and sprayed it on my hair everyday. Well needless to say once again I ended up in the clinic. My hair/scalp was so itchy I did not know what was happening.
   
   it turned out the vinegar gave me a bad rash and I needed medication and was told not to colour my hair for months.
   
   So needless to say my family doctor thought I was nuts and advised me to quit reading the net for solutions (we all know how doctors are against home remedies)
   
   I believe in a lot but I guess I carried it to far. The point being. if you read something about what you have it can make you more sick with worry so the problem becomes worse in your head.

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