Communicating disease prevention information to the public: Research-based guidelines for creating effective web content

Today, more Americans are turning to the Internet for health information than ever before. In response, there is growing demand for accurate, understandable, and appropriate health content to meet consumers' evolving information needs. To date, much of this content has been disease specific—focusing on symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment. However, as the prevalence of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and other preventable conditions in the population increases, Americans are actively seeking information on how to promote their health and prevent disease.

The Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (ODPHP) has developed research-based guidelines for writing and designing effective prevention-focused Web content specifically for audiences with low literacy. These guidelines are based on three underlying principles: (1) Information must be easy to locate, navigate, and use. (2) Health information written for the public should improve understanding, build knowledge, and facilitate healthy decision-making. (3) To influence behavior change, information on prevention must be relevant, motivating, and actionable.

These guidelines are for all public health professionals and may benefit Web designers, managers, and usability specialists. The guidelines were informed by existing research-based recommendations from the federal government, experts in the usability and health communication fields, leading theories of health behavior change and health communication, and by original research conducted on behalf of ODPHP.