WebMD Reveals Which Health and Wellness Stories Captured the Nation’s Attention in 2010
NEW YORK, Dec. 6, 2010 /PRNewswire/ — WebMD Health Corp. (Nasdaq: WBMD), the leading source of health information, today announced its 2010 Year in Health (www.webmd.com/yearinhealth), which represents the health stories, searches, questions and trends that WebMD’s audience of more than 83 million monthly visitors sought from the company’s websites, mobile applications and communities during the year.
(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20101206/NY11725)
“Every year millions of people come to WebMD for answers to questions about their health and wellness,” said Dr. Michael Smith, WebMD’s Chief Medical Editor. “When we looked back at what people were interested in during 2010, some clear new trends emerged and it was easy to identify the major topics that really defined this year in health.”
WebMD found that we are a tired nation that wants to live longer and learn what bed bugs are all about. WebMD’s team of physicians and editors are highlighting these memorable stories in WebMD’s Top Stories of the Year.
WebMD's Top Stories of the Year
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1. Bedbug Invasion
2. Fatigued Nation
3. Whooping Cough Returns
4. Consequences of Concussions
5. Understanding Health Care Reform
Among the most popular news stories of the year were those that hit
close to home. Items in the medicine cabinet and the kitchen
topped the list along with the ever-popular celebrity stories.
Top News Stories
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1. Children's Medication Recall
2. Pancreatic Cancer Linked to Soda
3. Michael Douglas Throat Cancer
4. Best Sunscreens
5. "Extreme Restaurant Meals"
Americans were deeply concerned about the health issues affecting
actors, athletes and other public figures during the year.
Top Celebrity Health Stories/Issues
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1. Michael Douglas/Throat Cancer
2. Phil Mickelson/Psoriatic Arthritis
3. Bill Clinton/Weight Loss for Chelsea's Wedding
4. Bret Michaels/Brain Hemorrhage
5. Glenn Beck/Macular Dystrophy
The top five most searched health terms on WebMD were for
information about a variety of different conditions.
Top Searches
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1. Shingles
2. Gallbladder
3. Gout
4. Hemorrhoids
5. Lupus
WebMD also took a look back at the relationship between the top
search trends year over year and found that concerns turned from
one bloodsucker to another - head lice to bed bugs. Interest in
cancer-related searches continued to rank high and wellness
trends shifted from the Acai berry to Vitamin D.
Search Trends
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2010 2009
1. Bedbugs Head Lice
2. Throat Cancer Anal Cancer
3. Whooping Cough Swine Flu
4. Gluten Acai berry
5. Vitamin D Resveratrol
Men and women did their fair share of searching, but what they were
looking for couldn't have been more different - unless of course
it had to do with sex.
Top Women's Topics Top Men's Topics
------------------ ----------------
1. Period Problems Sex Life
2. Fatigue Penis Questions
3. Super Foods Testosterone
4. Thyroid Problems Flat Abs
5. Better Sex Life STDs
Americans also turned to WebMD when they had questions about
everything from weight and blood pressure management to getting
pregnant and avoiding infections.
Top Questions
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1. How to lose weight?
2. How to get pregnant?
3. Is bronchitis contagious?
4. Is pneumonia contagious?
5. How to lower blood pressure?
People were eager to share what they learned about beauty
information or the latest recall with family and friends.
Top Shared Stories
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1. 15 Cancer Symptoms Women Ignore
2. Baby Formula Recall
3. The Body Bizarre
4. Another Big Burger on the Market
5. Common Skin Problems
Health and wellness conditions don't always arise at the best times
and busy Americans sought out information on-the-go. WebMD
Mobile provided instant access to information on a variety of
aches and pains.
Top Conditions on the Go
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1. Muscle strain
2. Abscess
3. Gastroenteritis
4. Acute sinusitis
5. Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Physicians on WebMD's healthcare professional site, Medscape.com,
clearly had healthcare regulatory issues on their minds in 2010
while keeping informed on the latest clinical information was also
a top concern.
Most Popular Topics - Physicians
--------------------------------
1. Medicare Reimbursement Changes
2. Health Care Reform
3. Prostate Cancer Screening
4. New Diabetes Guidelines
5. Calcium Without Vitamin D Boosts Heart Attack Risk
WebMD consumers are not only concerned about leading healthier
lives themselves, but also keeping their pets happy and healthy.
Whether it was pet nutrition or finding out the connection between
pets and personality, owners came to WebMD to better care for
their pets.
Top Pet Topics
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1. What Pets Can and Can't Eat
2. Pets in the Bed
3. Is My Dog Normal
4. Your Pet and Your Personality
5. Top Dog Poisons
About the WebMD Year in Health Methodology
WebMD’s team of physicians and health editors reviewed aggregate data from the company’s web-based and mobile experiences to identify the leading topics and trends in 2010. The results were based on a number of factors including search volume and growth, page views and stories shared. All information used to compile WebMD’s Year in Health is anonymous – no personally identifiable information was used.
About WebMD
WebMD Health Corp. (Nasdaq: WBMD) is the leading provider of health information services, serving consumers, physicians, healthcare professionals, employers, and health plans through our public and private online portals and health-focused publications. More than 80 million unique visitors access the WebMD Health Network each month.
The WebMD Health Network includes WebMD Health, Medscape, MedicineNet, emedicine, emedicineHealth, RxList, theheart.org and drugs.com.
SOURCE WebMD
