The Web is basically at the toddler stage of its development when it comes to its potential to make lives easier, healthier, and more interconnected. So we wanted to get into the game with the total site relaunch of Health.com. Sure, it’s a crowded game—there are hundreds of sites, and some very well established ones at that. But here are five things we think you’ll like about us.
As journalists and editors, we have a particular fascination with the way ordinary people (like us, to start with) solve health problems: how we find doctors, deal with insurance, talk to loved ones, process complicated information, cope with stress. In other words, we’re interested in how people do all the important life stuff that falls between the cracks in a strained, hurried, and broken health-care system. If you follow the links in one of our Health Journeys, I think you’ll see that our approach is a bit different.
Second, our approach to video is a bit different too: just experts and patients talking frankly about their experiences in ways we think are useful as you make your own decisions. Our short but fascinating video content includes Dr. Amber Guth talking about the way the breast-cancer experience can enrich the lives of some women. Check out our own Sean Kelley talking about how his kids motivate him to manage his diabetes.
Third, when it comes to healthy living (all the things you do when you’re not actually sick, to prevent getting sick), we love the power of the Web to deliver information in really useful ways. We’ve set up new Healthy Living and Healthy Eating channels. We have thousands of healthy recipes, including these incredible Guilt-Free Chocolate Muffins—they taste like pure fudge but are wheat-free and have only 154 calories. Or try our Cobb Salad, which has half the calories of the classic version but still provides a mouthful of bacon, blue cheese, and avocado in every bite.
Fourth, our approach to the zillion-headline world of health news is to try to answer the questions you really want answered: Is this story about spinach preventing cancer in mice even relevant to me? Should I worry about the controversy around a new drug? One example: Check out Theresa Tamkins’s funny blog on a study that may or may not show that exercise helps Scottish couch potatoes (or as she calls them, “couch haggises”) with depression.
And fifth, yes, we do like to blog. We do like to present diverse voices talking about human issues: pregnancy, struggling with cancer, parenting healthy children, and dealing with healthy food choices in supermarkets and fast-food restaurants.
Oh, one more: The important thing that excites us is the power of the Web to incorporate the voices of the people who use it. You’ll find comment opportunities sprinkled throughout the site. And we hope to hear from you, starting now: If you have comments, suggestions, or criticisms, email me.
Comments (5)
Great looking site, great content. Congratulations on the re-launch. I’d be watching my back if I were WebMD!
Concise Format, easy to follow links, content is informative. Congratulations on the revised format.
Thank you for helping to educate the public about Restless Legs Syndrome. I appreciate all the effort that went into the coverage of this condition that effects so many lives. I’m sure you are helping many patients to get a peacefull nights sleep.
Attn: Roseanne Lufrano
The Website is fantastic!
Great new website!
BUT WHERE IS THE INFO ON THE APRIL 28th “URGENT” TOTAL RECALL OF THE MOST PROMINENTLY PRESCRIBED HEART MEDICATION, SYNTHETIC DIGOXIN “DIGITEK”?
THE FDA HAS LISTED THE “VOLUNTARY” RECALL AS CLASS I ALERT.
MANUFACTURED BY SOLELY BY ATAVIS INC., IT IS CARDIAC MEDICATION DISTRIBUTED BY MYLAN/UDL PHARMACEUTICAL NATION WIDE, THE RECALL IS FOR ALL DIGITEK PRODUCED AND DISTRIBUTED FROM 25 APR 2007 THROUGH 25 APR 2008?
Please see http://www.actavis.us or http://www.fda.gov. for very inadequate information.