Listening to a Health Experts

It is also important to think critically about dispensed by health experts. Obviously, the counsel given by a fully licensed medical health practitioner with many years of education and experience in the health care field bears more weight them that of the average layman on the street. But even when discussing a health issue with someone who appears to be credible, there are still questions one should ask to ensure one is getting the most recognized and up-to-date information.

The criteria to keep in mind are whether the information comes from “randomized controlled studies or the options of respected authorities in the field.” (UCSF health, 2007). Thus the opinion of a specialist is more credible than that of a general practitioner who may not be as well informed about specific studies conducted in a certain field. One should also ask oneself if the information being given comes from a secondary source and if so, keep in mind that one is relying on someone else’s interpretation of idea.

English: A nutritional supplement containing essen...

English: Harvard Medical School

Harvard Medical School

Hence a clerk in a nutritional supplement store may not have the training to think critically about the health information he is receiving and would not be an excellent source for prescribing certain herbal remedies or supplements.

In addition, it is particularly important in the health care field to have the most up-to-date information on studies since information is constantly changing as new discoveries are made. Thus, one could ask one’s family doctor how recent the evidence upon which he/she is dispending information is. One should also beware of sensationalistic comments promoting “miracle cures” (UCSF Health, 2007).

These criteria can be applied to recognize reliable and unreliable sources in any given field of health. For example, when these criteria are applied to the field of alternative medicine, it becomes easier to differentiate the...