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A report on research into older adults’ technology use says AI chatbots can make health information faster and easier to understand, but their answers can be inaccurate and users may not check them. The researcher recommends “informed skepticism”: assess chatbot sources, verify important claims and avoid sharing identifying information.
A report on older adults’ use of artificial intelligence says chatbots can help explain health information, but users should approach answers with “informed skepticism” rather than accepting them at face value. The researcher, whose work examines how older people use technology, points to potential benefits such as quick explanations alongside risks including inaccurate advice, weak verification habits and privacy concerns.
The report, published by Medical Xpress, describes older adults using voice assistants and chatbots for questions about health, as well as for other everyday purposes. In a 2025 poll the researcher conducted with colleagues, one in two older adults said they used AI chatbots or voice assistants, and about 14% of that group accessed health information through them. These are survey findings, not a measure of use among all older adults.
A separate 2025 survey of 300 adults found that about one in five respondents turned to an AI chatbot with health questions. Among survey respondents who used a health chatbot, four in five said they never verified its output. The report does not provide enough detail here to determine how representative either survey was of the wider population.
Chatbots may answer quickly, summarize complicated material and provide a less intimidating way to ask about sensitive topics, the researcher writes. But they can also produce incorrect or misleading medical information, including advice that may be unsafe in an emergency. Some systems may be overly agreeable—a behavior researchers call “sycophancy”—and tell users what they seem to want to hear. The report also warns that public chatbot providers may retain prompts, recommending that users avoid sharing personally identifiable information.
Health Answers Need a Second Check
For older adults managing chronic conditions or new diagnoses, quick access to plain-language explanations can be useful between appointments. A chatbot can help someone frame questions for a clinician or make complicated material easier to follow. Those advantages do not make its output a diagnosis or a substitute for professional care.
The concern is that a fluent response can sound authoritative even when it is wrong. If users rely on a chatbot as their only source—particularly for urgent symptoms, treatment choices or medication questions—errors may be difficult to spot. The reported finding that many surveyed users did not verify answers highlights a practical gap between the availability of warnings and whether people act on them.
The researcher argues that older adults may be less likely than younger users to move between devices or formats to check an answer. That observation comes from the researcher’s work and should not be treated as a rule about every older person. Still, it points to the value of simple verification steps that can be completed within the same service, where available.
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How Older Adults Use AI
The report challenges the stereotype that older adults are generally unfamiliar with technology. It describes people aged 60 and older using tools such as voice assistants and chatbots for entertainment, trip planning and information, including health topics. The researcher’s focus is how people interact with these systems, rather than a clinical trial of whether chatbot advice improves health outcomes.
Health questions can be appealing to ask online because appointments may take time to arrange and clinical conversations can feel difficult. The report also says that using a tool at home may give some older adults a greater sense of control over health questions. These are reasons people may choose chatbots; they do not establish that chatbot answers are accurate or that the tools improve care.
The report notes that a bipartisan bill called the Aging with AI Act was introduced in the U.S. Senate in 2026, reflecting interest in studying both benefits and risks. The source material does not specify the bill’s later status.
““informed skepticism””
— The researcher whose work is described in the Medical Xpress report
Survey Limits and Safety Gaps
The source material does not give full methods, recruitment details or demographic breakdowns for the two 2025 surveys. Their results therefore should be read as reported survey findings, not as definitive estimates of chatbot use or verification habits among all adults or all older adults.
It also does not identify which chatbot products or health questions were tested, or quantify how often responses were wrong. The report describes risks and user behavior but does not establish that chatbot use caused a particular health outcome. It remains unclear how well specific verification features work for older users and whether the Senate bill will lead to further research or policy changes.
Check Sources Before Acting
The researcher recommends using chatbot features that show sources or let users assess the quality of an answer, then checking important health claims against reliable published information or a qualified health professional. Users should be especially cautious with urgent symptoms and decisions about treatment; a chatbot should not replace emergency services or clinical advice.
The report also advises learning how to opt out of AI-generated results when desired and avoiding personal identifying details in prompts. It gives Google Search as an example of a service that places AI summaries in results and says adding “-ai” to a query removes AI content. Search controls can change, so users should check the current settings of the service they use.
Further research is needed on how older adults use these tools, what makes verification practical, and how providers handle health-related prompts. The report does not announce a new study or a scheduled policy milestone; those developments remain open.
Key Questions
What does “informed skepticism” mean when using a health chatbot?
It means treating an answer as a starting point, not a guaranteed fact: check any available sources, verify important claims and consult a qualified health professional about medical decisions.
How many older adults in the report used AI for health information?
In a 2025 poll conducted by the researcher and colleagues, half of older respondents said they used AI chatbots or voice assistants; about 14% of that group accessed health information. The source does not establish that these figures represent all older adults.
Can a chatbot replace a doctor or emergency care?
No. The report warns that chatbots can give incorrect advice, including in medical emergencies. It describes them as a possible information resource, not a replacement for professional care or emergency services.
What privacy risk does the report identify?
Public chatbot providers may retain prompts, sometimes for training future models. The report recommends not entering personally identifiable information into chatbot questions.
Source: medicalxpress.com
