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" With more than a billion Web pages covering every health woe from asthma to headaches, the Internet has become one of the most widely used sources of health information-- and misinformation. Unfortunately, not all websites are keeping up with our demands for the latest, most accurate information. Here&amp;#039;s how to search smarter. Refine your search.  If you do a Google search for the words &amp;quot;lung cancer&amp;quot; you&amp;#039;ll be offered a staggering 50 million-- plus pages. Filter out irrelevant matches with the &amp;quot;advanced search&amp;quot; button (usually located to the right of the search box), which allows you to search for exact phrases, exclude pages containing certain words (&amp;quot;alternative treatments&amp;quot; for example), and limit results to recent (and likely more accurate) postings. This trick works wonders: Googling the words &amp;quot;lung cancer risk factors&amp;quot; netted more than 2 million pages, while an advanced search for that exact phrase on pages first seen within the past month yielded a more manageable 48 websites. Consider the source.  The site&amp;#039;s sponsoring organization, such as a university medical center or federal health agency, should be clearly identified at the top of the home page (or look for an &amp;quot;about us&amp;quot; link to explain who&amp;#039;s behind the info). &amp;quot;Consumers can feel pretty safe with the information provided by government organizations (URLs ending in &amp;#039;.gov&amp;#039;) or educational institutions (URLs ending in &amp;#039;.edu&amp;#039;)-- just make sure it&amp;#039;s not a student paper,&amp;quot; says John D. Halamka, M.D., chief information officer of Harvard Medical School. Some sites clearly identify the authors of the posted material; information written by physicians or reviewed by an editorial board of health professionals is the most credible. Health blogs-- online journals that could be written by anyone with Internet access-- aren&amp;#039;t generally reviewed by experts, so check anything you learn on a blog with another source. Also, be alert for potential conflicts of interest, such as a site that repeatedly touts a particular brand-name medication: A pharmaceutical company could be providing the content and/or financing the site. While info might be accurate, it&amp;#039;s wise to consult other, impartial sources. Seek seals of approval.  Look for sites that have been accredited by either the Health on the Net Foundation or the URAC, nonprofit organizations that set standards of quality for health-care websites. Participation in either program is voluntary, and accreditation doesn&amp;#039;t guarantee 100 percent accuracy. Still, Halamka says participation indicates that the content is likely reliable. Get second (and third) opinions. &amp;quot;A person&amp;#039;s medical and family history, current medications, and allergies all play a role in diagnoses and treatments,&amp;quot; says Rick Kellerman, M.D., president of the American Academy of Family Physicians. So even if you&amp;#039;ve found the answers to your questions online, always discuss the findings with your doctor. TO EVALUATE YOUR SYMPTOMS  Click on: familydoctor.org. Flow charts for nearly 50 common symptoms list various possible causes and offer self-care tips. TO GET THE LATEST HEALTH NEWS  Click on: medlineplus.gov. Read medical journal abstracts and recent releases from health-news organizations, Reuters Health, and HealthDay. TO CHECK UP ON YOUR CHILD&amp;#039;S HEALTH  Click on: kidshealth.org. Separate areas feature topics of interest to parents and kids. TO GET THE SCOOP ON A MEDICATION  Click on: pdrhealth.com. Jargon-free drug info based on the  Physicians&amp;#039; Desk Reference, the guide doctors use. TO WATCH A SURGICAL PROCEDURE Click on: or-live.com. You&amp;#039;ll understand a procedure better after seeing it firsthand. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.redbookmag.com/body/health-fitness/advice/a2274/good-health-info-online/?link=emb&dom=yah_life&src=syn&con=blog_redbook&mag=rbk>