HealthGuard

HealthGuard, a service of NewsGuard, helps you identify trustworthy sources of health news and information as you browse the web — and warns you when you encounter links to sites with unreliable health or medical information.

A team of trained HealthGuard analysts has reviewed and rated hundreds of health and medical news and information sites, assessing each site based on nine journalistic criteria. Generally credible sites get a “Green” rating, meaning they adhere to basic standards of accuracy and transparency. Sites that publish health misinformation such as unproven treatments or bogus medical studies are flagged with a “Red” rating, meaning you should read them with a grain of salt.

Even if you find information on health sites that HealthGuard has identified as generally trustworthy, it’s always a good idea to talk to your doctor about any issues, rather than trusting information you find online. Even accurate information may apply differently to different patients, and there’s no substitute for years of medical training and expertise. The internet should not be your doctor, and neither is HealthGuard.

Instead, think of HealthGuard as a trusty sidekick to keep you away from untrustworthy health advice, and to point you toward more trustworthy sources, as you browse the web.

HealthGuard is for personal use only. Any commercial use of HealthGuard is strictly prohibited by the NewsGuard Terms of Service.

Please note: An Access Code from a qualifying organization is required to activate this extension. Alternatively, you can buy/use a subscription for NewsGuard to use the HealthGuard extension. HealthGuard will only show the Green/Red shields until activated.