Don't pick it

Illness, disease, health risk… what to do? Bury your head in the sand and hope for the best (yep – I’m up for that) or try to keep yourself informed? If you want to know the worst, and the best, read on.

New bedfellows

Best Treatments is sponsored by the British Medical Journal, but recently it popped up on the Guardian website. So alongside ads for homeware and tourist trips to Newcastle and Gateshead you can find "high quality patient information on a wide range of health issues, from cancer, depression and back pain to every day ailments like the common cold and period pains."

Not that we at WTH are squeamish about picking the best free stuff out of a commercial website – if the free stuff is good, the provider is entitled to wave a bit of tempatation under our noses, and Best Treatments is every bit as good as they claim.

I had a look at the section on infections, picking out Athlete’s Foot from a host of inviting lurgies. I got some plain-English information on what it is, what the symptoms are, what will happen to me and what I can do about it. This last was divided between what I can do myself – which treatments work – and what to ask the doc if over-the-counter treatments don’t work.

The trouble is, I just caught myself looking suspiciously at my feet – is that a suggestion of cracked skin, the odd red patch…?
If you’re inclined towards hypochondria, best avoid Best Treatments. And if you’re allergic to the Guardian, you’’l have to hold your nose. But if you want a bit of control over your own health, this is a good stop.

(From the Gateway to websites, select "Health & medicine". Best Treatments is under "Conditions and treatment".)

Help just round the corner

I’ve rattled on about it many times in the past, so this is just a reminder that NHS Choices is worth a visit for two reasons. Firstly, you can use it as a first resort, checking your symptoms against their database to get some idea of what you might have and what to do about it. Secondly (perhaps best of all), the site is really good for finding a local doctor, dentist, chemist and so on. A simple postcode search yields nearest-first results with full contact details.

There’s lots else on this site but, before you explore, first read the hypochondria alert up the page!

(From the Gateway to websites, select "Health & medicine". NHS Choices is a Key Link.)