Health Information - Information Matters

Health information no longer moves in a neat, straight line from the researcher’s bench to the clinician’s desk to the patient. Today, it ricochets. It travels through search engine auto-completes, TikTok feeds, private WhatsApp groups, and AI-generated summaries long before a patient ever sits down with a doctor or a medical librarian. For cancer patients and survivors exploring Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM), this networked reality creates both real possibility and serious risk. In digital spaces, the challenge isn’t just finding information. It is untangling how certain health claims become highly visible, endlessly repeated, and ultimately trusted.

Featured Opinion

May 22, 2026 Elaine Kong

Beyond “Check the Source”: Information Literacy for Health Decisions in the Age of AI

For decades, the golden rule of information literacy was simple: check the source. Who wrote the article? When was it published? Does the URL end in .gov or .edu? Those questions still matter, but in today’s digital ecosystem, they are no longer enough. Modern users don’t just read static webpages; they navigate a chaotic blend of search engine snippets, algorithmic social feeds, influencer testimonials, and AI-generated summaries. In high-stakes arenas like personal health, evaluating a single “source” is no longer the primary task. The real challenge is making sense of an entire information environment.

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April 29, 2025 Xiaoqian Zhang

Health Information Without Borders: The Struggles and Strategies of Older Chinese Adults in Canada

Have you ever struggled to find the right health information, unsure of where to turn or what advice to trust? For many older Chinese adults in Canada, this challenge is even greater. They often face situations such as navigating a complex healthcare system, overcoming language barriers, and balancing traditional health beliefs with Western medical practices. These challenges can impact how they make health decisions and their overall well-being. Through in-depth interviews with 20 older Chinese adults in Canada, our research explores various factors related to how they seek and use health information. What did we uncover? Join us as we delve into their stories and the broader implications for health equity in Canada.

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December 5, 2024 Md Anwarul Islam

Exploring Women’s Health Information Literacy with AI: A South Asian Study

The relationship between AI and people’s health information is increasingly significant, and AI chatbot provides significantly more accurate answers to patients. However, while technology can help, it is up to people to decide how they want to use it. Even an AI tool like ChatGPT says “ChatGPT can make mistakes. Consider checking important information.” Using AI tools to make health-related decisions requires a good understanding of the information these tools provide. The project “AI and Health Information Literacy: A study exploring the perceived usefulness, and readiness among women in South Asia” aims to address the questions like “How do women in South Asia (SA) perceive the usefulness of AI in enhancing health information literacy?” and “What factors influence their readiness to adopt AI-driven health information technologies?”

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April 30, 2024 Wenjing Pian

Health Information Craving: A Force to Cyberchondria

Imagine encountering news about COVID-19 for the first time or experiencing unexplained bodily discomfort. Some individuals remain calm, while others instinctively turn to the Internet for answers. However, the digital realm can be both a blessing and a curse. The more information we seek, the greater our anxiety tends to grow. It’s a paradox: the quest for knowledge can inadvertently fuel worry and apprehension.This situation can be described as “cyberchondria”: the compulsive and obsessive health information seeking associated with anxiety, worry, and other negative consequences.