Misleading AI Health Answers Raise Alarm
Google has quietly removed AI Overviews from certain health-related searches after a report revealed misleading medical guidance. The change follows an investigation by the Guardian, which showed that Google’s AI summaries were providing incomplete or risky information for sensitive queries.
One example stood out. When users searched for “what is the normal range for liver blood tests,” the AI offered numbers without context. It ignored age, sex, ethnicity, and nationality. This could lead users to believe their results were normal when they were not.
After the report, the Guardian found that AI Overviews no longer appeared for queries like “what is the normal range for liver blood tests” and “what is the normal range for liver function tests.” However, similar searches such as “lft reference range” could still surface AI summaries.
Google AI Overviews and the Health Risk
When these searches were tested again hours later, AI Overviews did not appear. Instead, traditional links showed up. In some cases, the top result was the Guardian story itself. Google still offered users the option to run the same query in AI Mode.
A Google spokesperson told the Guardian that the company does not comment on individual removals. The company said it focuses on “broad improvements.” Google also stated that clinicians reviewed the highlighted queries. According to the company, “in many instances, the information was not inaccurate and was also supported by high-quality websites.”
The shift still marks a visible response. Health searches carry high stakes. Even small errors can shape real-world decisions.
Why Google AI Overviews Are Under Pressure
Last year, Google announced new tools to improve Search for healthcare. These included better summaries and health-focused AI models. The goal was to make medical information clearer and faster.
The Guardian’s findings challenge that promise. Vanessa Hebditch from the British Liver Trust called the removal “excellent news.” Yet she warned that this addresses only a narrow slice of the problem. She said the larger issue remains: AI Overviews still appear across many health topics.
The concern is simple. Users often treat AI summaries as authoritative. In healthcare, that trust can be dangerous if the output lacks nuance.
What This Means for Search Users
Google has not confirmed how many queries were lost in AI Overviews. The changes appear selective. Some medical searches now show only standard results. Others still surface AI-generated text through variations.
This creates an uneven experience. A small change in wording can shift users from expert-reviewed pages to machine-written summaries.
For now, the episode highlights a growing tension. Speed and clarity drive AI features. Accuracy and context drive healthcare. Bridging that gap remains one of the hardest problems in modern search.
