Millions of people currently use the world wide web (WWW) for a wide variety of information and services. One appeal of this medium is 24 hours seven days a week access. People can find reliable health related information on virtually any topic in minutes. This is like having the world's largest library at the click of a mouse on a computer.

Many Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) offer comprehensive health related information services. The WWW offers some free comprehensive health information sites, but the difficulty can be finding and deciding which sites have credible and accurate information.

The purpose of this series of articles is to list WWW sites the authors have found to provide free current, reliable and accurate information. These sites could be used from research to giving advice to a relative. The sites are divided by health content areas for ease of identifying topics of interest and assistance. This listing could be book marked on computers, shared by EAPs to staff and subscribing customers, filed for future reference or built upon as additional sites become available. For ease of access these sites are linked at the Central Michigan University - University Health Services web page (www.healthservices.cmich.edu/). Future editions of the EAP Digest will offer health content areas presented in a similar fashion.

Alcohol and Other Drug Information Websites
Web Address		Summary of Site
www.health.org		Prevention Online (PREVLINE): Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration's National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information
www.nida.nih.gov		National Institute on Drug Abuse: Contains a large variety of reports and articles on a wide array of addictions.
www.jointogether.org		Join Together: A national resource center for communities working together to reduce substance abuse and gun violence.
www.bacchusgamma.org		The BACCUS and GAMMA Peer Education Network: A group of college and university student peer education groups focusing on alcohol abuse.
www.nasadad.org		The National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors. NASADAD serves as a focal point for the examination of alcohol and other drug related issues.
www.casacolumbia.org		The National Center on Addiction & Substance Abuse at Columbia University. This site brings together professional disciplines needed to study and combat all forms of substance abuse.
www.alcoholismhelp.com		A resource for people who are suffering from alcoholism and the friends and family of alcoholics.
www.alcoholics-anonymous.org		Alcoholics Anonymous. The website of an organization developed and conducted by alcoholics to help themselves attain and retain sobriety.
www.adultchildren.org		Adult Children of Alcoholics. A twelve-step program of men and women who come from an alcoholic or other drug affected home seeking solutions to their problems.
www.al-anon.org		Al-Anon/Alateen. Website for the families and friends of alcoholics.
www.na.org		Narcotics Anonymous. The official listing form Narcotics Anonymous international, a community based association of recovering drug addicts.
www.niaaa.nih.gov		The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) supports and conducts biomedical and behavioral research on the causes, consequences, treatment, and prevention of alcoholism and alcohol-related problems.
www.samhsa.gov		Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration: SAMHSA is the Federal agency charged with improving the quality and availability of prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation services in order to reduce illness, death, disability, and cost to society resulting from substance abuse and mental illnesses.
www.drughelp.org		DrugHelp: is a public, non-profit service of the American Council for Drug Education. Provides drug and alcohol prevention and education materials and programs.
www.cadca.org		The Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America provides weekly updates along with information about public policy, membership, and training activities.
www.dol.gov/dol/ workingpartners.htm		U.S. Department of Labor's Working Partners for an Alcohol- and Drug-Free Workplace. Specializing in workplace alcohol and other drug information. This site also has information on creating partnerships and research databases.
Tobacco/Smoking Websites
Web Address		Summary of Site
www.cdc.gov/tobacco/index.htm		Tobacco Information and Prevention Source (TIPS). Website on tobacco, which is sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
www.lungusa.org/tobacco		American Lung Association. ALA's website on tobacco information.
www.ash.org		Action on Smoking and Health. A national legal action antismoking organization.
www.costkids.org		Children Opposed to Smoking Tobacco. This organization was founded by a group of sixth-eighth grade students who wanted tokeep tobacco products out of the hands of children. This site focuses on educating kids of the dangers of smoking.
www.globalink.org/globdemo		GLOBALink is the International Tobacco Control Network, managed by the International Union Against Cancer. Its aim is to serve all those active in Tobacco-Control, Cancer Control and Public Health, using instant modern technology. It's free, but you need to become a member to participate.
www.cancer.org		American Cancer Society. This site includes information on prevention and awareness, community events, volunteerism, and a variety of other topics.
www.quitnet.org		Quit Net. Provides research-based methods via the web to support smokers trying to break the habit.
www.tobaccofree.org		The Foundation for a Smokefree America is a nonprofit organization, whose mission is to educate people of all ages about smoking and tobacco use.
Gambling Addiction Websites
Web Address		Summary of Site
www.ncpgambling.org		National Council on Problem Gambling. National Council on Problem Gambling is to increase public awareness of pathological gambling, ensure the widespread availability of treatment for problem gamblers and their families, and to encourage research and programs for prevention and education.
www.gamblersanonymous.org		Gamblers Anonymous. A support group for compulsive gamblers.
www.thewager.org		Weekly Addiction Gambling Education Report (WAGER). Harvard Medical School weekly publication presenting the latest research on pathological gambling.
www.800gambler.org		The Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey. Their mission is to provide prevention, education and referral services to anyone affected by this illness.
www.gam-anon.org		Gam-Anon. a 12 Step, self-help program for the family members, friends and loved ones of compulsive gamblers.
www.unr.edu/gaming/		Institute for the Study of Gambling and Commercial Gaming.Information on publications about gambling behavior and problem gambling.
www.nevadacouncil.org		Nevada Council on Problem Gambling. This site features a 24-hour help-line and additional resources on this issue.
www.camh.net/egambling/ main.html		The Electronic Journal of Gambling Issues (EJGI) offers an Internet-based forum for developments in gambling-related research, policy and treatment as well as personal accounts about gambling and gambling behavior.
www.mdch.state.mi.us/ ads/gambling/		Michigan Department of Community Health. This site is dedicated to reaching, informing and helping those with compulsive gambling problems. Visitors to the site can take a confidential self-test and are encouraged to call the 24-hour toll-free Help Line for themselves or for their friends and family members who might have a compulsive gambling problem.
Eating Disorders Websites
Web Address		Summary of Site
www.aabainc.org		The American Anorexia Bulimia Association. A national, non-profit organization of concerned members of the public and healthcare industry dedicated to the prevention and treatment of eating disorders.
www.aedweb.org/		The Academy for Eating Disorders. A multidisciplinary professional organization focusing on Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, Binge Eating Disorder and related disorders.
www.edap.org		Eating Disorders Awareness and Prevention, Inc. The nation's largest non-profit organization devoted to the awareness and prevention of eating disorders.
www.something-fishy.org		Something Fishy. This extensive page provides numerous links and lots of information about eating disorders and body image issues.
www.eatright.org		American Dietetic Association. Nutrition Resources will get you to information about eating disorders, including an extensive nutrition reading list.
www.hedc.org		Harvard Eating Disorders Center. Community of scholars dedicated to research, education, and public discourse in the field ofeating disorders.
www.overeatersanonymous.org		Overeaters Anonymous. A Fellowship of individuals who, through shared experience, strength and hope, are recovering from compulsive overeating.
www.mirror-mirror.org/eatdis.htm		Mirror-mirror. A site dedicated to Deborah Somone Fradin. It includes a wide range of materials on eating disorders.
www.edreferral.com		The Eating Disorder Referral and Information Center. They provide information and treatment resources for all forms of eatingdisorders. They also provide referrals to eating disorder professionals, treatment facilities and support groups, etc.
www.kidsource.com/kidsource/ content/disorder.html		Kids Source On Line - Eating Disorders. Covers anorexia, bulimia, binge eating disorder, causes and much more.
www.hec.ohio-state.edu/ bitf/index.htm		The Ohio State University's Body Task Force: resources forexploring the issue of body image disturbance and eating disorders.
www.edrecovery.com		Eating Disorders Recovery Online provides information and services to help you regain self-esteem, self-worth, lifemanagement skills and empowerment.

Although not exhaustive, the web locations presented provide grounded and reliable information. In future issues, additional topics will be covered. As a suggested routine for finding web based information, it is recommended that individuals search several web locations and zero in on the information they are seeking to find at least two sources that express similar viewpoints on an issue. Also, academic journals, textbooks and manuscripts should not be forgotten in the modern quest for information and knowledge.

The web is growing rapidly. Health oriented programs, facilities, practitioners, and scholars cannot fulfill their missions and goals adequately without acknowledging the cyber-phenomenon sweeping the world from the classroom, exam room, and clinic to homes across the globe. Hopefully this cross sectional view into the internet health environment will provide useful, timely, and powerful information and applications to improve our most valuable resource…our family's, community's, and nation's health. More cyber exploration will come and we hope you join the search for web information.

Disclaimer:
The research and information contained in this link are produced by individual faculty and do not necessarily represent the opinions or beliefs of Central Michigan University or The Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow College of Health Professions.

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