Googling For Health Information
Most people use a search engine like Google to find information. If you've ever done this you'll know it produces a huge number of results - many of which weren't what you were looking for! Try out some of the tips below for easier Googling.
Quick tips
- Use google.co.uk and select pages from the UK before you click search
- Use other words that describe what you're looking for e.g. instead of health you could use medical
- At the top of the screen select more then even more to access different areas of Google. Use this festure to search on specific topics and to access Google Scholar (journal articles, research papers)
- If you want to quickly find the meaning of a word enter define: before the word you're looking for (don't leave a space after the colon)
- If you're not sure what keyword to use, put ~ right before a word (you'll usually find this next to the enter key) This will tell Google to search for words that have a similar meaning. For example if you enter ~food, this will search for synonyms like nutrition, recipies, restaurants etc.
Use advanced search
When you’re using a search engine or a web directory use advanced search to:
- Be more specific with your keywords
- Search for websites in a particular language
- Search for websites that have been updated or published within a particular date
- Search for sites within a certain domain. e.g. government only sites (.gov.uk)
- Search for sites that don't contain "adult" material
Also try
+ Use the plus sign if your search term has different meanings. E.G bass could relate to fish or to music. To find out about guitars enter bass +guitar. Remember the space before the + .
- Use the minus sign to exclude words from your search. When you Google heart you'll also be presented with the radio station of the same name. To exclude this enter heart -radio.
" " Any words enclosed in quote marks will appear together in your results exactly as you typed them. e.g. "East Renfrewshire Council".
