Cyberspace can be guide to better health

Intelligently using the Internet to augment good health offers a way to live better. But the informed user must be able to separate valid information from dangerous scams and commercialism.

By JOHN A. CUTTER

© St. Petersburg Times, published December 9, 1998

hen Marilyn Bartholomew started to use the Internet about two years ago, she found t overwhelming.

"I'm a health nut, and it was difficult at first to find the information I wanted," says Bartholomew, a retired mental health therapist and teacher who lives in Carrollwood Village in Hillsborough County. "You could be on it 24 hours a day."

From the Web Health on the Internet Here are a few good places to start your search: http://www.healthfinder.gov/ -- Government-sponsored gateway to online health information. Easy to use and search. http://igm.nlm.nih.gov/ -- A project of the National Institutes of Health and the National Library of Medicine. Allows users to search Medline, with its 9-million biomedical journal citations, as well as other health care resources. Can provide ways to find more technical information. http://www.kidshealth.org/ -- From the Nemours Foundation and its related hospitals, clinics and centers. Good resource that provides information tailored to young children, teens and parents. http://www.ama-assn.org/ -- The official site of the American Medical Association and its journals. Includes helpful information for consumers. http://www.hon.ch/ -- Another good gateway onto Internet health sites, sponsored by the Health on the Net Foundation in Switzerland. It is dedicated to improving medical information on the Internet. If you do not have a computer or Internet access, many public libraries have computers for the public to use. Also, reference librarians can help with books and other resources. Or you might try calling the National Health Information Center (http://nhic-nt.health.org) at (800) 336-4797. The center referral hotline for professionals and consumers to get such things as addresses and phone numbers of health-related organizations.

A Seniornet course at the University of South Florida and a bit of trial-and-error surfing gave her the confidence to search the Internet competently.

"It has helped, because knowledge is power," she says. "I ask better questions of my physician and sometimes get better information on the Internet because doctors are so busy."

With more than 12,000 Web sites and scores of computer mailing lists and newsgroups devoted to everything from traditional medicine to experimental science, the Internet has become one of the first places people turn for information and support. Almost two-thirds of Internet users seek health information, according to the Medical Library Association.

Doctors are seeing more informed patients recently, as computer users find academic and research sites whose data once was available only to a select population of professionals. They also are seeing patients who are misled by sites or other computer users promoting unproven therapies.

"A lot of people are out there on their own looking for information, and there is a lot of junk on the Internet," says Dr. Robert J. Miller, medical director of the Cancer Care Center at St. Anthony's Hospital in St. Petersburg, who uses his personal Web site (http://www.aboutcancer.com) as a gateway for his patients onto the Internet.

He created his site as defensive move, because he knows patients, especially those with cancer, want as much information as they can get. "My assumption is people are going to look, so why not look over my shoulder, and I can direct them to the most credible sites," Miller said.

But what if you are out there on your own, looking for information. Doctors, computer teachers, Web site developers and computer users offer this advice:

Remember almost anyone can create a Web site.

"Unless it says right up front where the information is, and you trust the source, you should be wary," says CeCe Bowman, a senior systems analyst who helped develop the Web site for Bayfront Medical Center in St. Petersburg (http://www.bayfront.org).

For example, information from major medical institutions, government research agencies and similar well-known health associations is a safer bet than an individual's personal Web page. And, be wary of commercial sites that are pushing a product or a therapy. (Note: Commercial Web site addresses end with ".com" while non-profits, like Bayfront end in ".org." Government sites end with ".gov.")

Bowman also suggests you look for information on the site about how the institution, government or individual selects and screens what is posted. For example, Bayfront uses a panel of health professionals.

Also, look for an indication of when the site was updated. If the last time was a year or two ago, you should be cautious.

Use a reputable Internet gateway site, such as the government-sponsored site at http://www.healthfinder.gov. Healthfinder is an easy way to find the kind of information you need, on everything from diseases to medical dictionaries.

If you want to troll on your own, try the Yahoo! search engine (http://www.yahoo.com), because it breaks down your searches into manageable chunks.

Also, try a relatively new search engine, Ask Jeeves! (http://www.askjeeves.com), which allows you to search by asking a simple question. For example, if you Ask Jeeves, "Where can I find information on arthritis?" it searches major Internet search engines for you, but also reduces your question to other questions (such as, "Where can I find contact information for individuals and families about the disability or condition arthritis?" and "Where can I find a concise encyclopedia article on arthritis?).

Newsgroups and mailing lists (known as listservs) generally provide better information if they are moderated.

Dozens of newsgroups and listservs are devoted to medical information and support for people with diseases and disabilities. Generally, they are open to anyone who joins or decides to send an electronic message to them. (Newsgroups are forums where all messages are posted on the Internet; listservs send the messages to your computer, sometimes one electronic mail message at a time, other times as a daily file with many messages.)

Some newsgroups and listservs are moderated, which means someone is reading the messages to try to keep out commercial posting and inaccurate information. Some have no moderator and are free-for-alls.

If you search sites like Yahoo!, you will find listings of these groups. Look for the group's FAQ (frequently asked questions) file, which describes its purpose and addresses such issues as whether it is moderated.

Chat rooms on the Internet and services like American Online can provide a wonderful way to find others who share your condition. But, as with many things on the Internet, be cautious. Just because someone says she was cured using an experimental therapy does not mean it is true or will work for you.

And just because someone claims to be a doctor or health professional does not mean he or she is. The Internet provides anonymity, which can be a gift that permits you to speak openly and a curse that allows others to pretend they are something they are not.