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

As the Internet grows in popularity and importance, many have raised concerns over access and content, especially with regard to young people and health information. This paper begins with a brief discussion on Internet access 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 two distinct samples of New York City adolescents (N=319). It was found that adolescents of dissimilar socioeconomic and ethnic groups access and use the Internet, with a large percentage seeking health information. The paper concludes with recommendations for future health Web sites targeting adolescents.