Loading...The internet offers a wealth of information about every subject imaginable, and this is no different when it comes to information and education about health related issues. People tend to be very curious about their health, and sometimes very paranoid about their health as well. While the internet can be a helpful resource for basic information, it should never be used as a self-diagnostic health tool of some kind. Just because a web site may say that your symptoms are in line with a rare form of cancer, it does not mean you have cancer. Only a professional medical technician can tell you that information with any kind of accuracy. So, always keep in mind that personal health web sites are only meant to inform, not to diagnose any illnesses or cause people fright from the information that they provide.
1. Web M.D.
This site is easily the most popular personal health site on the internet. Not only does the site have thousands and thousands of articles about everything and anything in the field of personal health, but the site also features the very popular symptoms checklist, which is an interactive way for you to describe your symptoms, and then the site will tell you what disease or ailments you may have. The accuracy of these are dubious as any number of symptoms usually leads to a list of cancers, rare diseases and relatively minor ailments, all on the same list, from the same set of symptoms. Obviously, this site does not do much to put a person’s mind at ease, but it is still a useful tool when used properly.
2. National Institutes of Health (NIH)
The National Institutes of Health is a great resource for people seeking education on personal health topics. The site boasts articles from some of the leading researchers in all health related fields, and the web site is very easy to navigate in order to find just what you are looking for. The NIH also has a host of statistics and other facts that will help if you are writing a research paper for a class or anything like that.
3. The Mayo Clinic
The Mayo Clinic is perhaps one of the most famous names in medicine and health today, and has had that reputation for more than a century. The Mayo Clinic is a not-for-profit hospital that has always ranked amongst the best hospitals in the world because of its great research and work in the field. All of this information from their research and work can be found on their web site, which is one of the great resources for personal health on the internet today.
4. Drugs.com
As prescription medications become more and more common, more and more people become curious about them: what they do, how they work, what are the side-effects, etc. Drugs.com is a web site that is dedicated to answering those questions, as well as others. It also features a searchable database that can tell you what kind of drugs you are taking.