title: Health benefits and risks of the Internet.
abstract: The linking of the Internet with health and medicine involves all levels of society, including individuals, health care providers, professional organizations, communities, and local and federal governments. A growing body of evidence suggests that despite the benefits of the Internet, this means of communication also figures into the creation of new forms of health risk for some users. This paper examines the effects of the Internet on the promotion of both health and illness. The discussion focuses on those factors of online communication that produce positive health outcomes and also the potential for health risk. Implications for health providers and for better serving patients are analyzed together with recommendations for improving services for those who go online to access health information.
authors.affiliation: School of Public Health, University of Illinois at Chicago, 60612-7259, USA. judlevy@uic.edu
authors.forename: Judith A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Levy
authors.forename: Rita
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Strombeck
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior; D001292:Attitude to Computers; D001294:Attitude to Health; D002648:Child; D002652:Child Behavior; D003219:Confidentiality; D004992:Ethics, Medical; D006266:Health Education / Q000379:methods*; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006293:Health Promotion; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet / Q000592:standards* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D018907:Privacy; D000297:Psychology, Adolescent; D002666:Psychology, Child; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care; D012306:Risk; D012648:Self Care / Q000523:psychology*; D012657:Self-Help Groups; D014481:United States