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Where Do Americans Get Health Information, and What Do They Trust?

Key Takeaways

  • Health care providers are a key source for health information: 85% of Americans say they get health information from health care providers at least sometimes, making them the most common of seven sources we asked about. And a majority see them as providing information that is highly accurate.
  • Many Americans also want to hear people’s real-life stories. About two-thirds (66%) say they get health information at least sometimes from people experiencing a similar health issue as them.
  • Smaller shares are getting health information at least sometimes from newer sources like social media (36%) and artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots (22%).
  • Half of Americans struggle to determine the accuracy of health information: 12% say it is extremely or very difficult to know if the health information they come across is accurate, and 38% say it is somewhat difficult.
  • Most Americans say they come across conflicting health information. And when they do, 54% say it is at least somewhat difficult to know which information to trust.

Click here to read the full report from Pew Research Center.