New ways we're supporting health and well-being in India
Every day, people across India come to YouTube for answers to their health questions. With over 300 billion views on health content in India last year alone, we have a profound responsibility to ensure the information they find is credible. Today, we’re sharing new partnerships and features built on that commitment.
Democratizing access to authoritative health information and education
Our primary goal is to make sure everyone can access credible, expert-led health information. We do this by partnering with authoritative institutions to bring vital knowledge directly to our users and to the next generation of healthcare providers.
Empowering healthcare professionals
YouTube is a powerful platform for professional learning, and we’re partnering with the College of Nursing at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), to bring professional nursing education to YouTube. Expert-designed courses on critical topics like Wound Care and Hospital Infection Control will be available to over 5,000 nursing students and practicing nurses across the country.
Supporting front-line health
This builds on the incredible work we see from organizations using YouTube to tackle public health challenges. For example, as part of Mission UTTHAN, the National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS) uses its channel to train front-line ASHA workers on the threat of antimicrobial resistance. When trusted institutions turn to YouTube to share vital knowledge, it reinforces our role as an essential platform for public health.
Expanding support for health and well-being
In critical moments, getting reliable information quickly is essential. We are expanding our First Aid shelves, in both English and Hindi. These shelves appear at the top of search results for topics related to common emergencies, providing easy-to-follow, credible videos when you need them most.
Building on our existing "remind me to take a break" and "bedtime reminder" tools, we are now rolling out the ability for users to set a daily limit for how long they can scroll on the Shorts feed on mobile. This feature is designed to help viewers be more mindful of their time on our platform and encourage healthier screen habits.
Prioritizing the Next Generation: Youth Well-being
This focus on high-quality information is especially important for young people. With 253 million adolescents, India has the largest youth population in the world—digital natives for whom online life is their life. Our approach is guided by our Youth Principles, which affirm that reaching young people on our platform is a privilege, earned by putting their well-being first.
We’re committed to making YouTube a supportive place for teens and their families with features available today in India, including:
- Videos on mental health topics alone saw a 20% increase in viewership compared to last year. Our Teen Mental Health Shelves surface reliable, age-appropriate content for sensitive topics. We created this content in collaboration with global health organizations, including Indian partners like NIMHANS and Sukoon Health, Fortis National Mental Health Program.
- Supervised Experience helps parents and teens have more informed conversations about digital habits.
- To encourage a healthy balance, reminders to take a break or go to bed are turned on by default for users under 18.
This work is personal to me. As a doctor, my oath was to ‘do no harm.’ As a public health leader, my goal is to improve health at scale. It’s a privilege to see those missions come to life online, and we’ll continue working with our partners to help people across India live healthier lives.
