A Real Doctor Wants You to Know This Before You Google Your Symptoms

Let's face it, we all have searched the Internet to get help for a weird rash on the arm or a broken nail and more. Sometimes, it can be a treasure trove of DIY hacks that can instantly provide relief to some aches and pains (Aloe Vera, ftw!) but other times it can instil the fear of God in you and misdiagnose your bee sting as cancer. 

More recently, the self-diagnosing on the Intenet has raised concerns about 'cyberchondria'! A recent Google trend report on how Indians surfed the web in the past year has some shocking revelation. According to Google trends, "How to make coronavirus vaccine at home? And how to improve immunity against COVID?" were some of the top trending searches on the internet in India, followed by questions around food to eat to build immunity, plasma therapy, COVID symptoms, home remedies for COVID, etc. This indicated that people are all willing to take a chance on self-treatment and self-diagnosis. But is this worth the shot? 

Here's what article Dr Sanjay Shah, General Physician and Dr Pradeep Shah, General Physician, Fortis Hospital, Mulund have to say: 

YOU COULD MISDIAGNOSE, OVER-DIAGNOSE OR UNDER-DIAGNOSE YOURSELF 

More often than not, self-diagnosis on the internet always points towards something more frightening. It can lead to misdiagnosis or over-diagnosis. For example, if you search for ‘headache’, you are likely to find around 20 results showing a different interpretation of headaches, each scarier than the other. There are chances that your headache may be something small but the internet search shows signs of a cancerous tumour or some other neurological problem. In the bargain, you will freak out and this may cause a high level of stress. Moreover, self-medication involves pharmacological risks that can result in severe adverse reactions. Sometimes, you would even under-diagnose yourself which could have a serious long-term impact on the quality of life or worse, death.

EXCESSIVE SEARCH FOR MEDICAL SYMPTOMS CAUSES CYBERCHONDRIA 

Cyberchondria refers to a person’s anxiety about their health that is created by excessive use of the internet to search for medical information. In the early 2000s, a British newspaper coined this term as wordplay for hypochondria. Like hypochondria, cyberchondria involves excessive anxiety about health. According to experts, lately, cyberchondria is becoming a growing problem as people resort to finding out what the internet has to say about their health and wellbeing. People having cyberchondria tend to misinterpret normal bodily changes and minor physical symptoms as signs of serious illness or disease. For many people living with health anxiety, fear can become so severe that it interferes with work and relationships. 

SEEKING HELP FROM A MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL IS THE RIGHT WAY 

Many times, we come across patients with a whole list of questions that they have about their symptoms and medical condition. Some patients come with a diagnosis they have already arrived at by using the internet. And some, come with lab reports and medical investigations, also a result of online searching. Of course, we would call them empowered patients, but quite often these people display a lack of trust in the health advice offered by doctors. We must understand that no technology or internet search can completely replace professional medical help. By doing so, you are inadvertently putting yourself both at risk of anxiety and incorrect diagnosis and can end up spending more money on healthcare.

‘SEARCH IT’ THE RIGHT WAY 

Using search engines to gain knowledge about health topics is not a magazine thing but checking the source of the information is very important. Information on these websites and apps should be viewed very cautiously as they don't know your medical history or actual symptoms. The suggestions they make are not made by medical practitioners but are actually key-word based.

SO, NEXT TIME WHEN YOU SURF THE INTERNET FOR ANSWERS REMEMBER THESE THINGS:
Anyone can publish content online
Look to online search as your starting point, not your final answer
Seek information from reliable websites such as health clinics, hospital websites, reputed health magazines and publications 
Don’t delay actual care from medical professionals
Do your online research, then write down your questions, call your doctor or a health centre in your neighbourhood, and talk to someone who knows how to tie all the pieces together