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Your Personal Pro-Active Health Education
6 Tips on Getting Accurate Information
Be Pro-Active in Managing Your Health ~ Who can you believe?
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If you’re interested in being informed about your health, you probably want to research various topics.
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You should read about matters of health for yourself, and perhaps get information from other media too, such as documentaries.
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However, there’s one problem when you’re trying to research something you don’t yet know much about. Who can you trust? How do you know that what you’re reading is accurate? How can you be sure you’re not being duped into believing something that isn’t true?
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There’s a lot of misinformation about health, especially online. So knowing what to trust is essential.
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Below are 6 ways you can check if the information you’re reading is accurate.
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Your Personal Pro-Active Health Education: #1
Know Which Sources Are Trustworthy
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The first thing you should do is consider the source of your information.
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There are many sources that you can almost immediately dismiss for a number of reasons.
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For example, you might look at who is behind the information. Is there a particular organization that sponsors the website?
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Research whether they might be selling a product related to the information.
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What do others, particularly medical professionals, think of the sources? For example, Google decided to stop showing search results from Natural News because they feel that the site spreads misinformation.
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A website from an educational or public organization is probably more trustworthy than one from a for-profit company.
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Your Personal Pro-Active Health Education: #2
Check Citations
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When you read an article about health, make sure that the author cites his sources. You might find these at the bottom of the article, or they might include hyperlinks to their sources within the text. Any reputable source like Reliawire will cite their sources.
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You should have a look at these sources to see if they back up what the article says. Many articles can take a scientific study and use it to make an exaggerated conclusion.
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You can usually read the abstract from a study, although sometimes you need access to an academic journal to read the whole thing. Find other sources about the citations too, to see who else has discussed them.
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Your Personal Pro-Active Health Education: #3
Use Multiple Sources
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You should be careful not to rely on a single source when you’re ready about health matters. It’s always best to check any information you find against a number of reliable sources.
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However, when you’re comparing information and analyses, you need to try your best to be objective. Don’t just believe the article you like the sound of most.
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With each source you use, you should analyze its background and trustworthiness to work out who you can believe. If five sources say one thing but one says another, it’s more likely that the five are right – as long as they have back-up fact and evidence.
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Your Personal Pro-Active Health Education: #4
Make Sure Your Info Is Up-to-Date
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Another important thing to remember is that health information needs to be current.
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Our knowledge and understanding of the human body change all the time. Therefore, it’s important to find the most recent information.
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Is an article you’re reading only citing studies from 50 years ago?If so, it’s probably not the most reliable information you can find.
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Even when our understanding of something hasn’t changed, there are likely to be studies and sources proving that. Science is all about checking and checking again.
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Your Personal Pro-Active Health Education: #5
Become a Science Buff
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How much do you think you know about science? You might have learned about biology, chemistry and physics at school, but science often isn’t a favorite subject for many.
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One thing many people don’t learn at school (or don’t remember) is how to properly scrutinize a scientific article or study.
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If you want to know what health information you can trust, becoming more scientifically literate is a good idea. You can learn about the scientific process and key principles by asking for evidence.
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It’s useful for other areas of your life too, from parenting to cleaning your home.
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Your Personal Pro-Active Health Education: #6
Speak to Your Doctor
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Lastly, if you want to know more about a health topic, talking to your doctor is a good idea. They can help you take a look at a source, and they can do their own research to help you out.
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You might talk to a general practitioner, or you could speak to a specialist if you want to discuss a certain topic.
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Your doctor won’t know everything, but they can help you to look at something from the perspective of a medical professional. They can help you debunk information you can’t trust and reassure you on topics with robust evidence.
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If you don’t want to be fooled by bogus health information, be careful who you trust. There are lots of ways to pick up on bad advice.
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