Social Media: Top 5 Useful Health Tweets

By Barbara Ficarra, RN, BSN, MPA

Twitter is a powerful form of social media, and it is a phenomenal resource for sharing information.  Twitter can help improve your health.

A significant blog on Mashable, “HOW TO: Use Social Media for Better Health” by Ben Parr, he writes that “Healthy living can be a shared experience.”

Social media is about connections and information, while healthy living is about consistency and knowledge. Combined, social media can bring a lot of useful information and support to people looking to turn their lives around or for those who just want to be a little more conscious about what they eat. Social media is great for health because it provides many innovative ways to stay motivated and well-informed.

Twitter is a valuable tool for obtaining the latest information.  “Twitter is a real-time information network that connects you to the latest information about what you find interesting. Simply find the public streams you find most compelling and follow the conversations.”

By following tweets from trusted sources you can find information that can help guide and support you.  Tweets can offer advice and assist you in getting the health information you need.

I follow many amazing people on twitter.  Their insights are invaluable and the information they share is extremely useful.

Number 1

@garyschwitzer

Name:  Gary Schwitzer
Location:   Minneapolis-St.Paul
Web:  HealthNewsReview Blog (for journalists and consumers)
Bio:   Publisher, HealthNewsReview.org

Tweet

Only a 2-star score for WSJ column, “Sluggish?Confused? Vitamin B12 May Be Low.” Unsubstantiated anecdotal claims. http://bit.ly/eI03Gz about 5 hours ago via TweetDeck

“This column could have shed light on an uncommon vitamin deficiency that has important medical consequences for some people. Instead, it presents a series of unsubstantiated and loosely connected claims that are supported by anecdotes.”  Full Post

Number 2

@bobfinn

Name:   Bob Finn
Location:  Pleasant Hill, CA
Web:  Bob Finn
Bio:  Medical and Science Journalist. SF Bureau Chief for Intl. Med News Group

Tweet

Amer Heart Assn says CPR training should be required for high school graduation. Jane Anderson reports. http://bit.ly/ele8S5 6:32 PM Jan 10th via TweetDeck

Internal Medicine NewsAHA: CPR Training Should Be High School Graduation Requirement

“Cardiopulmonary resuscitation training should be a requirement for graduation from high school and should include instruction on the purpose of an automated external defibrillator and how to use one, according to an American Heart Association consensus statement released Jan. 10.”  Full Story

Number 3

@hearthub

Name:  HeartHub
Location:  24/7

Web:  American Heart Association
Bio:  Learn and Live. Stay informed, be inspired or get involved with the American Heart Association.

Tweet

Do you know the proper way to monitor your blood pressure at home? The American Heart Assn. gives simple instructions http://bit.ly/c0K1lV 3 minutes ago via web

How to record and monitor your blood pressure.  Full Post

Number 4

@SharecareNow

Name:  Sharecare
Web:  Sharecare

Tweet

How big’s your lunch? Know what’s in a serving – http://ow.ly/3Fuvn (via @ClevelandClinic) about 2 hours ago via HootSuite

What’s in a Serving?

“In a portion-distorted world, here are some tips on how you can determine a proper serving size.  Most of us would like to think that we have a good handle on portion control. But in our country – where “super-size it” seems to be our cultural motto, obesity is running rampant, and diabetes rates continue to rise – most of us could stand to learn a few things about portion control.” Full Post

Number 5

@boltyboy

Name:  Matthew Holt
Location:  San Francisco
Web:  TheHealthCareBlog
Bio:  THCB, Health 2.0; Chelsea fan; husband; father in a few months

Tweet

RT @health2con: Welcome Team MB4L to the Engage with Grace Developer Challenge! https://www.mybridge4life.com/ #health2con #health2dev about 20 hours ago via TweetDeck

“My Bridge 4 Life is a wellness network designed to help patients, caregivers, supporters and individuals create a personalized wellness plan.”  You can read more about My Bridge 4 Life here.

These are only some informational sites and tweets that you may find useful.  I’ll update you with insightful and valuable tweets in the future.

Your turn

We would love to hear from you.  What insightful tweets would you like to share?  Who do you recommend to follow?  Share your twitter name with us.  As always, thank you for your time.

Follow me on Twitter @BarbaraFicarra

Related Posts

Digging Deep: The 411 Behind Medical News Headlines
Gary Schwitzer Notes Some Gems in Health News Reporting

Full Disclosure

I am on the Editorial Advisory Board and Consumer Health Educator for Sharecare.

Image:  iStockphoto

You May Also Like

Leave a Reply