Where do people turn to for health advice?
Discover where people turn for health advice and how AI is changing information-seeking habits.
Key points
- NHS websites and GPs are the most common first sources for researching new health symptoms.
- Nearly one third of surveyed UK adults have used AI for health information or symptom research.
- Younger adults are more likely to use AI for health queries, while older age groups favour healthcare professionals.
- Trust in AI for health information is mixed, with many people checking sources or seeking further research.
Whether experiencing a cough that rattles, or finding an unusual bump in an unexpected place, you may pick up the phone to your local GP. It could be you chat with your partner or a close family member as you scroll through symptoms online.
For some, they may turn to Artificial Intelligence (AI) for medical answers. Nearly one third of UK adults, according to our recent survey of 2,000 nationally representative Brits, used AI for health information or to help diagnose a new symptom. And, after doing so, nearly half of those Brits saw a healthcare professional afterwards.
While AI may be changing how some Brits find, explore and understand their health needs, it could also reshape how they balance convenience with trust when using new sources of information.
Where do people turn first when experiencing new health symptoms?
For those surveyed, when experiencing new health symptoms, the top three sources they turn to for initial information are:
- the NHS or official health website (43%)
- a GP or healthcare professional (43%)
- a pharmacist (26%)
Yet, nearly one in five would ask AI. That’s almost five percent more than Brits asking a family member.
And there’s seemingly generational preferences. While Brits aged 18 to 24 are the age group most likely to turn first to influencer videos on social media to ask questions when experiencing new health symptoms, those aged 25 to 34 are most likely to ask AI. Some generations, specifically more than half of those aged 55+, prefer to go straight to their GP or healthcare professionals for these initial questions. That’s more than any other age group.
While nearly half of our surveyed women prefer to check out NHS or official websites, men are more likely to go straight to their GP or medical professional.
“When experiencing new health symptoms,” says Aviva’s Associate Medical Director Dr Larissa Stevenson, “people may want to ease their worries and find reliable information quickly. For some, that’s traditional routes like scrolling the NHS website or booking in to see their GP. For others, alternative sources of information, particularly AI, may seem to balance speedy answers with accuracy.
But no matter where your answers are coming from, it’s always important to check the information is accurate, up to date, and relevant to your own situation.”
The rise of AI for health advice and information
UK men are more likely than women to use AI for diagnosing new health symptoms, based on our survey results. And while a majority of those surveyed haven’t used AI for health information or diagnosing new symptoms, it’s a close margin within certain age groups.
Those answering “yes” to “Have you ever used AI for health information or to help diagnose a new symptom?”
| Ages 18 to 24 | Ages 25 to 34 | Ages 35 to 44 | Ages 45 to 54 | Ages 55+ |
| 46% | 48% | 42% | 31% | 14% |
This suggests that younger Brits are more likely using AI to gather health information than perhaps those of older generations.
What people use AI for when seeking health advice
The top five ways those surveyed used AI to find health advice include:
- describing their symptoms (36%)
- finding out general health information (32%)
- exploring whether something to do with their health is “normal” (30%)
- finding treatment options for a health concern (26%)
- checking whether they’re overreacting about health worries (25%).
More than two in five Brits who have used AI for health information or to help diagnose a new symptom said they found the information from AI helpful. More than one third felt it was clear and easy to understand and one third found the information reassuring.
For some, using AI may be the first step before seeking professional medical advice. Nearly half of the men and women surveyed who have used AI for health information or to help diagnose a new symptom, saw a healthcare professional after using AI. Nearly half of those aged 18 to 34, and over half of those aged 35 to 54, sought professional advice after exploring their symptoms with AI. Nearly a quarter specifically used AI to find out whether they needed to visit a healthcare professional.
While some may use AI to explore new health symptoms, that doesn’t necessarily mean they ultimately trust the advice or information given. For some Brits, it may simply be a starting point.
Do people trust AI for health queries?
Overall, nearly half of those surveyed would trust the results (and accuracy) from AI when asking about new health symptoms. Yet, more than one third of this group admit they’d trust the results given by AI but would “conduct more research to be sure”. 65% of those aged 18 to 24, the highest of any age group, would trust AI overall with the results given. This suggests that some may be comfortable using AI for medical questions as a first stop in gathering information.
More than half of those surveyed would trust AI to provide accurate and reliable information on:
- Recipe instructions (56%)
- Calories and nutritional information for recipes and ingredients (51%)
But, importantly, nearly as many of those surveyed wouldn’t trust the results from AI. And this may be because those who used AI for health information or to help diagnose a new symptom describe the information given by AI as:
- confusing (15%)
- misleading (13%)
- potentially dangerous (12%)
- false (12%)
- odd or unusual (10%).
It also doesn’t seem that those surveyed, overall, implicitly trust AI. A majority would look for the source of information for the answers provided, with those aged 18 to 24 and 25 to 34 more likely to do so than any other age group.
Fewer than half of Brits surveyed would trust AI for information on:
- exercises to target specific muscle groups (48%)
- advice for eating habits, like best time to eat, managing cravings (48%)
- recovery plan for after exercising (47%)
- exercise program to follow to achieve a particular goal (46%)
- ‘how to’ instructions to get the right form for exercises (46%).
And for some Brits, accepting the use of AI for medical needs might not extend to healthcare professionals.
AI in professional health care
For those surveyed, depending on how it’s used, AI is met with varying levels of comfort when used by doctors to diagnose or develop treatment plans. More than two in five of those surveyed wouldn’t feel happy for a doctor to use AI in any part of their diagnosis or treatment plan. And those aged 45+ are least likely to be happy with their doctor using AI in this way.
Fewer than 10% of Brits would be happy for doctors to use AI in all parts of their diagnosis.
The top ways surveyed Brits would accept doctors using AI include:
AI for diet and fitness information
Brits are more likely to check out the NHS or official health websites, according to our survey, for diet and fitness information. And they’re more likely to turn to a GP or healthcare professional, a nutritionist, a family member, or choose not to use any platforms before turning to AI for this type of information.
And while women are 7% more likely than men to research diet and nutrition ideas through NHS or health websites, our surveyed men are more likely to use AI for this type of information. Those aged 25 to 34 are the age group most likely to use AI for health and fitness questions.
For help with fitness, like exercise routines and tips, the most popular platforms UK adults would go to are the NHS or official health websites, a GP or healthcare professional or influencer videos. Nearly a quarter wouldn’t use any platforms for help with their fitness and 15% would turn to AI for help with their fitness.
Those aged 25 to 34 are most likely to use AI for help with their fitness, more than any other age group, followed by NHS or official websites and influencer videos. The youngest age group surveyed, those 18 to 24, would prefer to watch influencer videos, followed by NHS or official website and asking a friend. Meanwhile, on the other end of the age spectrum, those surveyed aged 55+ are most likely to not use any platforms for help with their fitness.
Men are 6% more likely to use AI for help with their fitness than women.
“AI is becoming one of the several places Brits turn to when they want quick health information, alongside more familiar options like the NHS website, a pharmacist, or a GP,” reflects Dr Larissa Stevenson. “For some, it seems to work best as a starting point, helping them put words to what they are feeling, sense-checking whether something is ‘normal’, or exploring possible next steps. But trust is not automatic. Some people find AI responses helpful and reassuring, while others find them confusing, misleading, or even risky, which is why checking sources matters. And when AI moves into clinical settings, comfort levels vary depending on how it’s used. So, it’s important to use AI thoughtfully, and keep healthcare professionals and trusted sources at the centre of your decisions.”
All statistics in this article are from Aviva. Censuswide Survey (J15666CWMPg). 21 April 2026 - 24 April 2026.
The research was conducted by Censuswide, among a sample of 2000 Nat Rep UK Respondents, aged 18+. The data was collected between 21.04.2026 - 24.04.2026. Censuswide is a member of the Market Research Society (MRS) and the British Polling Council (BPC), and a signatory of the Global Data Quality Pledge. We adhere to the MRS Code of Conduct and ESOMAR principles.
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