Be wary of online health sites

With all the rain we got this past week, it is no suprise that clinics around town had a surge in business recently. Generally, this is because for most Malaysians, the family doctor is the first point of reference for any ailment; be it for minor, or serious ones. however, more and more people are heading to the Internet to get information about their health concerns. Some do this so that they can decide whether the discomfort they are feeling warrants a vsit to the doctor's. For some, the information is becoming a huge trend with cyberchondriacs trawling the Web soaring to about 160 million in 2006. A 37% rise over 2 years, according to market research, firm Harris Interactive. The firm says that cyberchondriacs now represent 84% of all online adults in the US, up from last year's 80%, and 72% in 2005.


But there are concerns that information from the Net are viewed as more than a source of reference for further discussions but rather as a means for self-diagnosis. An online report stated that the information can cause confussion & unnecessary alarm. More worryingly, surfers could also be fleeced by irresponsible parties. Apparently, there are hundreds of unscrupulous sites which exist purely to make money. The consultation, if any, is rather one-sided, and patients often don't know who they are talking to or what their motives are. They could even be victims of counterfeit medicine producers. Before Malaysians get to the level where the US cyberchondriacs are at, there is a need to educate Malaysians on the fact that not all viewed on the Internet is true. There is also a need to somehow verify the sites - whether they are actually authentic. Of course, there are millions of sites out there & that the authorities can't possibly screen all of them. But we can start with the relevant agency screening the sites residing in local servers.