ANN ARBOR, MI (University of Michigan) - The vast majority of people over the age of 50 now look for health information on the internet, and a poll from the University of Michigan finds that nearly three-quarters of the people polled would not trust or have very little trust in information that was generated by artificial intelligence.
A poll from the University of Michigan finds that nearly three-quarters of the people polled would not trust or have very little trust in information that was generated by artificial intelligence.
This was concerning to the doctor who directed the poll, as 20% of adults said they have little or no confidence they could spot health misinformation. And that number goes even higher among adults with poor physical or mental health.
"And this is really concerning because those are patients who could most benefit from accurate and reliable health information. And we know that when people have lower levels of health literacy, or ability to understand and use health information to make decisions about their health and health care. We know that can lead people to underused preventive care that's based on evidence. We know it can make it more difficult to self-manage chronic conditions, and we also know it can make it more difficult to follow through on providers' health care recommendations," says Dr. Jeff Kullgren, director of the National Poll on Healthy Aging.
While it's good to ask your healthcare provider questions, Dr. Kullgren says there are also helpful, vetted resources online for patients to get information.
While it's good to ask your healthcare provider questions, Dr. Kullgren says there are also helpful, vetted resources online for patients to get information.
"My patients often want to educate themselves first, or maybe something that we talk about in an appointment, they want to educate themselves more about online after the fact. And so I almost always send my patients to a great website that's called medlineplus.gov, and it's one that a lot of people, unfortunately, don't know about, but it can be a great resource because it is run by the National Library of Medicine. So it's purported as the world's largest medical library, and it is convened by the National Institutes of Health, and their whole mission in creating this website is to provide information to patients that is based on science," adds Dr. Kullgren.
More than 70% of adults in the poll say their health professionals are very trustworthy.
More than 70% of adults in the poll say their health professionals are very trustworthy.
