Editorial Policy

Health Decoder content is written for education first: plain English, neutral wording, and careful limits around what a blood test page can and cannot say.

Editorial principles

• Use plain language instead of dense medical jargon where possible.
• Explain what a marker measures and what related tests add context.
• Avoid diagnosis, treatment instructions, or certainty where the evidence does not support it.

How pages are updated

• Pages are reviewed when content structure changes or new marker pages are published.
• Metadata, internal linking, and FAQ wording are checked so pages stay consistent across the library.
• Last-updated notes are shown where the page template supports them.

How corrections work

• Broken links, wording issues, and factual corrections can be reported through the contact page.
• Clear content errors are corrected in the page source and then reflected in the published page.
• Corrections do not imply personalized medical review of any individual reader's result.

How updates are prioritized

• High-traffic pages, core guides, and foundational trust pages are updated before lower-priority pages.
• Pages with outdated links, unclear taxonomy, or weak internal discovery are reviewed as the library grows.
• Changes that improve safety wording or reduce ambiguity take priority over cosmetic edits.

How language is kept safe

• Pages use wording such as "may be associated with" rather than certainty claims.
• Single out-of-range results are not presented as proof of a disease or treatment need.
• Urgent-care notes are used only where symptom safety is relevant and are kept general.

What we avoid

• Personalized diagnosis language
• Treatment dosing or medication advice
• Claims that a single blood result proves a condition

Content creation process

• Pages start from publicly available clinical references such as government health resources and patient-education libraries.
• Content is written specifically for patient education, using plain English and neutral, non-alarmist language.
• Each page is reviewed for non-diagnostic language before publication to ensure it does not imply personal medical advice.
• The goal is to help readers understand what a marker measures and what questions to bring to a clinician, not to replace clinical judgement.

Update cadence

• Pages are reviewed when the site taxonomy changes, new markers are added, or the source coverage for a topic improves.
• High-traffic pages and core guides are reviewed first when updates are needed.
• Low-priority cosmetic edits are batched and handled after safety-related or structural updates.
• There is no fixed calendar schedule; updates are triggered by content changes rather than arbitrary dates.

How corrections are handled

• Corrections can be reported through the contact page by including the page URL and a description of the issue.
• Factual errors are fixed in the page source and reflected in the published page after review.
• Corrections are tracked as editorial tasks and handled based on severity and impact.
• Correcting a page does not involve personalized medical review of any individual reader's lab results or health situation.

What the site is explicitly not

• Health Decoder is not a peer-reviewed medical journal and does not publish original clinical research.
• It is not a substitute for a qualified clinician's assessment of your individual health.
• It is not a diagnostic engine and cannot determine whether a specific result is normal or abnormal for you.
• It is not a source of emergency medical advice. If you need urgent care, contact a healthcare service directly.