Most of us are familiar with the wide variety of information of all types available for viewing on YouTube. However, we all know that you can’t believe everything that you see and hear, especially when it comes to medical information. Luckily, there are certain things you can do to verify the validity of any medical information you may find on YouTube.
Consider the Source
You may find that you’ve found some groundbreaking medical information on YouTube. However, there are a few things that you need to do to check the validity of the information. For starters, consider the source. More often than not, an outside website is listed in the overview section below the video. It’s important that you visit the website to get as much information as possible. Is the data backed by research, medical trials, and other accredited medical sites? This information that must be verified before you can trust any claims that are being made.
Use Official Sources to Verify the Medical Information
There are key sources that you can use to verify medical information. Sources like MedlinePlus and healthfinder.gov are considered both credible and trustworthy. If you are looking for information on YouTube regarding alternative or complementary medical approaches, there are well-respected and trustworthy websites for this too. In fact, the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) is a good starting point. However, the main idea is to do your homework. Before you follow any medical advice you see on YouTube or anywhere, verify the accuracy and credibility of the information.
Check for Bias
If you’re watching a YouTube video that appears to present unbiased medical information, make sure the purpose of the video is truly unbiased and not an attempt to sell something. A video that masquerades as non-biased but is actually trying to sell some product or service is biased and you can’t trust the information. Generally speaking, you can trust sites with .gov, .edu, and org addresses. However, you should still do your homework. There have been sites that have presented themselves as official by using these web addresses, even though they weren’t. Plus, an .edu address could belong to an individual that is employed at an education institution. Of course, this alone doesn’t make the medical information valid or official. Plus, some org sites belong to organizations that have a specific agenda which prevents them from being an unbiased source of information.
Test the Accuracy of the Claims
You need to make sure that the claims that are being made in the video aren’t too good to be true or premature. If a medical product or technique is still in the experimental stages and has not been confirmed as effective, you shouldn’t consider any claims that are being made until any and all information can be officially backed and verified. You might need to follow the trial or clinical study until the results have been published. However, any strong claims that are made should be regarded with trepidation until they can be officially verified. This is especially important for medical students at places like California College San Diego and doctors.
There are many medical claims floating around YouTube and the web in general. You may tune into YouTube to gather medical information and find yourself surrounded by videos that claim to be an authority on some medical product, condition, or service. However, you must do your homework to verify any medical claim you hear. Luckily, this is not difficult. It just takes using the proper channels to verify the medical information. Even if a claim is true, some of the claims may go beyond what has been proven.
