Practical methods for checking the source, authorship, evidence, and wording of health websites, posts, testimonials, statistics, and guidelines. This page lists all 12 Primary Care Evidence Guide guides on the topic, each with its opening lines so you can pick the one that matches your question.
Primary Care Evidence Guide is an independent publication. These guides are for education and do not replace care from a qualified professional.
Guides in this section
Questions to Ask Before Starting a Weight-Loss Program Advertised Online
Online ads for weight-loss programs promise fast enrollment, home delivery, and quick answers. What they don't always make easy to find is who is actually prescribing your medication, what's in the bottle, and what happens if something goes wrong after your card is charged.
How to Spot a Health Product Testimonial That Leaves Out the Important Details
Short answer: A health-product testimonial is one person's story, and the person telling it (or the company sharing it) usually chose what to include. It can be completely honest and still leave out what you would need to judge whether it applies to you.
How to Compare a Supplement Claim With the Human Study Behind It
A supplement page says an ingredient "supports" something and points to research. Before you believe it, put the claim next to the study and check five things: the ingredient, the dose, the people studied, the outcome measured, and how long the study ran.
A Guideline Changed: How to Find the Current Version
When you hear that a health guideline changed, do not act on the headline. Look for the original page, check the date it shows for when it was written, reviewed, or updated, and ask your health care provider whether the change applies to you. A guideline is a written set of recommendations about care.
Before Sharing a Health Post: Date, Source, Claim, and Audience
Last updated: September 24, 2026 Before you share a health post, check four things: its date, its source, its claim, and its audience. The U.S. National Library of Medicine's MedlinePlus says a social media post may come from someone you know, but that does not guarantee the information is good.
A Patient Story Online: Experience, Evidence, and Generalization
A patient story can show you what one person's experience was like and give you questions to ask. It cannot tell you what will happen to you. Before you act on a story, separate what happened to that person from what research shows, then bring the gap to your own provider. The worksheet below helps you do that. .
A Clinic Website Says Results May Vary: What Questions Still Matter
"Results may vary" tells you that outcomes differ from person to person. It does not tell you what the results were, how many people had them, or who paid for the claim. Two public sources give you a way to fill those gaps. MedlinePlus explains how to judge a source before you trust it.
Health Statistics in the News: Absolute Risk Versus Relative Risk
| Last updated: September 24, 2026 When a headline says something "cuts risk by 50%," the number alone does not tell you how much your own chances change. Relative risk compares the chance in two groups, often as a percentage. Absolute risk is how often something actually happens, such as 1 person in 1,000.
A Health Website Looks Professional: Five Credibility Checks
. Updated September 24, 2026. Picture this. It's late at night and you're searching for answers about a health worry. You land on a site with clean photos, calm colors, and confident headlines. It looks like a real health resource. How do you know if it is?
Online Health Quizzes: Privacy, Purpose, and Diagnostic Limits
An online health quiz can help you organize your thoughts, but it can't diagnose you. Before you answer, check three things: who runs the quiz, why it exists, and what happens to your answers. This guide gives you a short process map, the questions to ask, and a printable checklist you can use on any quiz.
A Medical Page Has No Sources: How to Find the Original Guidance
A medical page with no sources is a page that doesn't show where its information came from, so you can't check it. MedlinePlus, the consumer health site of the U.S.
Who Wrote This Medical Page: Author, Reviewer, and Update Date
Before you act on a health page, find three things: who wrote it, whether anyone with health expertise reviewed it, and when it was last written, reviewed, or updated.