As soon as we have the slightest headache, rash, or odd pimple, we switch on our web browsers and head straight to Google for answers on our condition. While some read up advice on Yahoo! Answers, others look to WebMD for solutions to their health problems. In my experience, this has never turned out well for anyone. Here are a list of reasons why someone shouldn’t Google solutions to their health problems.
A website cannot scrutinise you like an experienced doctor can.
It is quite unlikely that the average person correctly detects what condition they have, based on what a search engine has to say. This is why going to a doctor is essential. For instance, if you have a rash on your breasts, it could be anything from a bacterial infection, to an insect bite, to breast cancer. An experienced medical practitioner may take one look and tell which one it is, but what you see on Google, based on keyword optimisation, cannot match that level of accuracy.
Not only that, physical illnesses require physical examination *duh*. Blood pressure, pulse rate, skin health, and other markers, which general practitioners check, reveal a lot. Many a time, routine check-ups at the doctor’s reveal things you might never have known if you avoided getting regular checks.
The internet is full of ineffective and/or dangerous home remedies for health issues.
If you read online that headaches can be cured by drinking green tea, you might just drink 10 cups of green tea a day based on that advice. But did you know that green tea does contain certain amounts of caffeine, and can CAUSE headaches in many people, too? Similarly, coffee is often recommended as a headache reliever, when it in fact triggers migraines. So, if you take advice from uninformed people on the internet, you might just add to your misery.
Stalling actual diagnosis by self-diagnosing online can delay the detection of serious illnesses.
There are many reasons we avoid seeing doctors. Rising medical costs, lack of time, and stalling for fear of bad news, is among them. Then, there is also the shame attached to STDs or “feminine” illnesses like breast cancer or cervical cancer. Many women never see doctors at all, and Google their condition, choosing to accept whichever result suits them best. Don’t do this.
If you think there is the slightest chance that something is wrong, go to a doctor, get tested, and get better sooner rather than later.
In most cases, sites conclude that we are all dying of some deadly disease.
A good reason to see a real doctor instead of searching the internet for cures to different ailments is that most sites will tell you that you have a deadly, chronic illness. Nearly every tiny symptom, be it a boil or a cough, eventually, can turn into cancer, according to many sites. This is because most websites don’t want to run the risk of giving incomplete information, or trivialising what could grow into a serious condition. So, they all present a worst-case scenario and recommend seeing doctors for legal safety. But, the truth also is that this feeds anxiety and misinformation. Every headache you get is not a brain tumour. The only way to know what is really happening, then, is to ask a real doctor, face to face. Why sit at home and worry about what you have, when you can ask someone who actually studied medicine and can explain everything to you accurately?
