Half of Spanish Internet users turn to Google for their medical consultations

49% of Spanish Internet users aged 16 to 74 have made medical consultations through the Google search engine in a period of three months, according to a report by Eurostat, the statistical office of Union European, prepared last August.The figure has increased by 30% in just ten years, an increase similar to that recorded in the rest of European countries since last year 48 of the Internet users of the member countries He turned to Dr.Google, 26% more than in 2006.

Spain is the seventh country of the European Union that consults Google most for medical reasons. The list is headed by Luxembourg (71%), Denmark (65%) and Germany (63%).At the end of this classification we find Romania (29%) and Bulgaria (24%).And the most searched information through Google is related to injuries, diseases, nutrition or health improvement.

From the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (OUC) they have explained that this increase is the result of the sum of various reasons: the increase in accessibility to the Internet thanks to smartphones; the increase in social sensitivity for taking care of oneself and having good health; and the amount of information that health centers, hospitals and public administrations share on the internet and on social networks.

advantages of medical consultations via internet

But in addition to Google, have increased other uses of specialized health internet that well used can be very positive.For example, according to the UOC eHealth Center, patient communities are consolidated as 'Patients like me', where experiences are shared among patients and health professionals participate.E-health, in general, offers tools, apps, solutions and strategies to monitor our state of health that bring us closer to professionals through internet, without needing to travel unnecessarily to health centers.

risks of visiting al'doctor 'google

However, turning to Google for medical consultations carries risks. And To avoid them, you have to be aware that the internet is not a substitute for the doctor and check the reliability of the source.eHealth Center of the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC), Manuel Armayones and Carme Carrion, professor of Health studies, state that Internet users often write in the search engine the name of a pathology or a set of symptoms and the result usually directs them to a definition on Wikipedia.»The health status of a person, however, is much more than a diagnosis.Aspects such as age, life habits, sex, personal, work and family situation and the presence of other pathologies can be as relevant as the same diagnosis », they stand out.

However, the dangers diminish if the person is able to recognize quality information and it is clear that Google is a complement to the diagnosis of the professional, according to these professionals.For all this , according to The director of the eHealth Center, the digital society demands that experts generate and position quality information and offer alternatives that citizens learn to relativize and filter the results obtained on the internet.

Source: Open University of Catalonia (OUC)

Featured photography: Pixabay.com

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