Finding trustworthy health information

Federal government health agencies are a good place to find health information. Their web addresses end in .gov.

MedlinePlus is a free health information site from the U.S. National Institutes of Health, with plain-language pages on many health topics.

The National Cancer Institute (NCI) lists hospitals, universities and medical journals and books that provide evidence-based information as sources you can trust.

Many large hospitals publish free health libraries written and reviewed by their clinicians.

Large professional and nonprofit organizations, such as national heart or cancer groups, are often reliable. But anyone can register a .org address, so check who runs it and who pays for it.

Adults are most confident they can tell true from false health information when it comes from a doctor or other health care provider (80%).

Nurses, nurse advice lines and community health workers can also help you make sense of what you’ve found.

NCI suggests asking a librarian for help finding trustworthy articles. Medical libraries at colleges and universities may also be open to the public.

Patient advocacy groups that rely on expert-reviewed information can combine reliable facts with peer support.

Check that the group is clear about who funds it and that it doesn’t push one product or treatment.

MedlinePlus warns about ads designed to look like neutral health information. If a business pays for a site, the information may favor its products.

NCI adds: if a site is selling something or promoting a “cure”, be very careful.

Good health information gives balanced facts based on research. Beware of dramatic writing, promises of cures and claims that sound too good to be true.

NCI advises not sharing personal information with a health site until you understand how it will be used and protected.

Be careful with links in emails and texts, and only open attachments from senders you trust.

NCI recommends following social media only from reputable sources. Many government agencies, hospitals and health nonprofits have official accounts that link back to their websites.

People often share how they feel and what they’re trying. NCI reminds readers that even someone with the same condition has a different body and history from you.

Don’t take treatment recommendations from anyone other than your own clinical team. You don’t know where the poster got their information or whether it’s current.

Only about a third of people who use social media for health follow up with a health professional (36%) or another online source (35%) most of the time.

Before acting on a health tip, look it up on a trusted site or bring it to your next appointment.

Adding the name of a trusted health site, or “.gov”, to your search can bring up reviewed information faster. Government and university sites are sources you can usually trust.

Examples

• “MedlinePlus sleep problems”
• “migraine .gov”
• “[topic] medical school health library”

Ads should be clearly marked as ads. Watch for ones designed to look like neutral health information.

The FTC suggests searching a product’s name along with words like “review”, “complaint” or “scam” before you buy.

Health anxiety is linked to searching for health information online, and strongly linked to cyberchondria: repeated, distressing searching.

The NHS suggests noting how often you look up health information, then slowly cutting back.

In a 2023 study, researchers asked an AI chatbot to write short medical papers. Of 115 references it gave, 47% were made up and 46% were real but inaccurate. Only 7% were real and accurate.

If a chatbot names a source, open it yourself and check it says what the chatbot claims.

In a 2026 randomized study, nearly 1,300 people worked through medical scenarios written by doctors. Those using AI chatbots did not make better decisions than people using web search or their own judgment.

The chatbots often mixed good and poor advice, and people struggled to tell which was which. People also weren’t always sure what details to give.

• Ask for help writing questions for your appointment
• Ask for trusted organizations that cover your topic, then visit them
• Ask it to explain a medical word in plain language
• Ask “what are the risks?” and “who should not try this?”

For step-by-step fact-checking and privacy, see “AI scams, deepfakes & misinformation”. For why chatbots tend to agree with you, see “When AI just agrees with you”. For what AI can and can’t do for mental health, see “AI & mental health”.

NCI suggests that if your doctor is too busy, you can ask whether a nurse or another provider can talk with you.

Patient portals and nurse lines can also be a good place for follow-up questions.

Cost and access are real barriers. About three in ten uninsured adults say lacking a provider or affordable care is a major reason they turn to social media for health.

Save two or three trusted health sites on a family member’s phone or in your family group chat. Pointing people to credible sources is one of the steps the Surgeon General’s toolkit suggests.

Show, don’t lecture. Sit together and look something up on a trusted site. Respect their experience and choices.

The toolkit advises listening first, showing empathy and keeping these talks private rather than correcting people in front of others.

Young people can learn the same simple steps: who made this, when, how do they know, and what do trusted sources say?

MedlinePlus offers its health pages in Spanish as well as English. You can also ask your clinic whether they have interpreters or translated materials.