Adolescents, the Internet, and health - Issues of access and content

As the Internet grows in popularity and importance, many have raised concer ns over access and content, especially with regard to young people and heal th information. This paper begins with a brief discussion on Internet acces s issues. It follows with a section addressing Internet health content and provides a critique of three examples of current Internet health Web sites. Data are then presented from a preliminary survey on the Internet use of t wo distinct samples of New York City adolescents (N=319). It was found that adolescents of dissimilar socioeconomic and ethnic groups access and use t he Internet, with a large percentage seeking health information. The paper concludes with recommendations for future health Web sites targeting adoles cents. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.