Social Networks and Health – The Research and the Reviews

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I’ve been increasingly interested in health-focused social networks. Why? Because several recent scientific studies have found that real-life social networks are quite relevant to health. Indeed, a study published earlier this year in the New England Journal of Medicine evaluated a large social network of over 12,000 people over 32 years to assess the person-to-person spread of obesity [1]. The study results suggest that friends, siblings and spouses have an even greater effect on a person’s risk of obesity than genetics.

What’s interesting is that this type of research is being done now, when the use of web 2.0 services facilitating collaboration and sharing between users on the internet is thriving. We’re witnessing an explosion of social networking sites, many of which are focused on health.

Social Networks and Health

I’ve published an article titled Social Networks and Health over at the Highlight HEALTH Web Directory. It describes some of the recent scientific studies on social networks and health, and discusses web 2.0 in healthcare and medicine.

More and more websites are tapping into the “wisdom of crowds” to collect health information and give advice. I believe these online social networks affect patients in much the same way as real-life social networks. Some 9.9 million consumers, in addition to reading weblogs, regularly post health information online and learn from each other [2]. People are clearly using these tools, and it’s my intention over the coming months to write a series of review articles describing the websites, what they have to offer and how they can affect your health. Check out Social Networks and Health for more information.

But what good are the reviews if we don’t understand the concepts? Several prominent bloggers will be guest posting and introduce us to Health 2.0, Fitness 2.0 and Medicine 2.0. I’ve created a page on the Highlight HEALTH Web Directory to index articles that discuss Web 2.0 in Health, Fitness and Medicine. I’ll post updates there when new content is added. You can navigate to it using the left-most grey menu button “Health and Medicine 2.0” at the top of every page on the directory.

In the spirit of web 2.0 and collaboration, I’m also looking for guest writers who are interested in writing a review of a social health network. Is there a specific site you visit regularly? Tell us about it in a review. This is a great opportunity to introduce yourself to a new audience and to share your thoughts and insights. I’ll treat each review as a guest post, with links back to your blog or website. I’ll also be writing about the reviews here at Highlight HEALTH.

Additional resources related to web 2.0 and health can be found in the following Highlight HEALTH Web Directory categories: Health 2.0, Medicine 2.0, Fitness 2.0, Health Search and Weblogs.

UPDATE: Instead of a page to index articles, I’ve started a blog, Highlight HEALTH 2.0. You can read more about it here.