Sources Policy

Health Decoder uses public, patient-facing medical references to explain common blood test markers in a safer and more transparent way.

Source types we rely on

• Public government health sources such as MedlinePlus, NIH, CDC, and NIDDK
• Large patient-education libraries such as NHS and Cleveland Clinic
• Widely used reference explanations for routine blood tests

Preferred source order

1. Public government and national-health resources
2. Large patient-education sources with stable clinical summaries
3. Page-level sources that help explain common marker context in plain English

How sources are used

• Sources support educational summaries, common context patterns, and FAQ wording.
• Source use is intended to improve clarity and consistency, not to generate personal medical advice.
• Where multiple public sources describe a marker, the page aims to summarize the overlapping, less controversial context.

How conflicts or gaps are handled

• If public references differ, the page stays conservative and avoids overclaiming.
• If the evidence is thin for a broad public summary, the wording stays general rather than speculative.
• Pages may be updated later when the library structure or source coverage improves.

What source priority looks like in practice

• Foundational pages usually start with government or national-health references.
• Patient-facing explanations are then used to support plain-English phrasing and FAQ wording.
• If a public source is too technical for a clear summary, the page keeps the wording simple rather than copying dense terminology.

What source notes do not mean

A source list does not mean the page has been clinically reviewed for your specific case. It means the page was written with public references in mind and is meant for educational use only.

How sources are verified

• Sources are checked for public availability so readers can access the original reference themselves.
• Government and national-health sources are preferred because they tend to be stable, reviewed, and freely accessible.
• Patient-facing readability is prioritized over technical depth; sources that explain markers in clear language are favored.
• If a source becomes unavailable or its content changes substantially, it is flagged for review during the next page update.

Update timing

• Source lists are reviewed when the corresponding page content is updated or restructured.
• Source links are checked for availability during page reviews; broken links are replaced with equivalent public references when possible.
• There is no fixed calendar schedule for source reviews; updates are triggered by page-level changes or reported issues.

What we do not cite

• Paywalled journal articles are not used as a primary source because readers cannot verify them without a subscription.
• Social media posts, discussion forums, and user-generated Q&A sites are not cited as references.
• Personal health blogs, influencer content, and sponsored health articles are not used as sources.
• If a relevant finding is only available behind a paywall, the page either uses a public summary or omits the claim.

Limitations of source notes

• Source notes support the educational framing of a page; they show where the summary was grounded.
• They do not make the page clinically reviewed for any specific individual's lab results or health situation.
• A listed source does not imply endorsement by that source's publisher, nor does it guarantee the source agrees with every sentence on the page.
• Source notes are part of the site's transparency effort, not a certification of clinical accuracy for personal use.