Brits turn to internet for health advice

Millions of Brits are turning to the World Wide Web to answer life’s vital questions instead of asking real people face to face as the pre-internet generation had to.

Doctors, lawyers and financial advisers are all losing business as the internet generation takes advantage of the anonymity the internet offers – plus the incredible breadth of information online, a new poll has revealed.

It’s especially true when it comes to answering sensitive questions like “am I pregnant?” – the number one question asked on leading internet search engine Ask.com in the past 12 months, although in Scotland the top questions centre on weight loss!
And thousands of embarrassed mums and dads are also turning to the internet for advice on how to deal with one of the most blush-inducing moments of parenthood – explaining the birds and bees to their kids.

“It’s a fact that the internet has a zero embarrassment factor when it comes to getting advice on tricky topics,” said Cesar Mascaraque, European MD of leading search engine Ask.com. However, many professionals warn against relying too heavily on information found on the Internet as it can be difficult to distinguish between amateur and professional information.

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