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Almost 50 percent of consumers say that online health videos are a top resource when searching for medical conditions and prescription drug information according to a new survey by Prevention, Men's Health and Women's Health magazines.

Health information websites such as WebMD were rated as the most popular destinations to view health information videos (43%) followed by pharmaceutical websites (14%), video sharing sites (9%) and social networking sites (6%).

Mary Murcko

User generated websites are also a popular resource for consumers. The survey found that 55 percent searches these sites for health-related information. This indicates that consumers value personal health experiences of average individuals along with trustworthy medical websites.

 36% searched healthcare information on Wikipedia.com
 36% read online forums, message boards on health-related topics
 27% read a blog on health-related topics

"Consumers are now the gatekeepers when it comes to their own personal healthcare issues," said Mary Murcko, SVP/Publisher of Prevention.

"Unlike years past, today's consumers are empowered by knowledge and seek the research to make informative health decisions for themselves and their families."

Other key findings include:  

Online health searching does make its way into conversations with their doctor: 
                                                                                   

37% have discussed medical information they found online with their doctor 
 

The majority of consumers report positive effects: 
 

 57% said it was positive, it helped our conversation 
 7% said it was negative
33% said it was neutral (it didn't help or hurt their conversation)