page 13
HEALTH LITERACY THE ROLE OF HEALTH LITERACY IN PREVENTIVE HEALTH CARE Health literacy is a key point in helping individuals understand and, just as important, implement knowledge in pursuit of a healthier lifestyle. The application of this knowledge is where the challenge lies. However, by applying health information to enable favourable behavioural changes, it is possible to take a big step towards disease prevention.
Reducing the onset of diseases is the main purpose of preventive medicine, helping people live happier and better lives and achieve their best selves. One huge component to this involves health literacy: a modifiable factor of shaping people’s behaviours – and ultimately, their health. People with greater self-reported health literacy exhibit a greater chance of developing health preventative behaviours, such as engaging in physical activity, adhering to regular check-ups, and a better perception of social standing and self-health control.
Health literacy can be divided into three levels: 1.
2. 3.
Functional health literacy (knowwhy) refers to effective information communication. Interactive (know-how) talks about new skill acquisition. Criticism or application includes personal and community empowerment in regards to healthy living.
Although understanding the levels can help create effective health promotion and prevention strategies, individuals must also be empowered with techniques to help them apply this theoretical knowledge. This includes having certain skills which are important to health literacy, such as comprehension (reading and understanding health information), numeracy (the ability to process, communicate, and act on numerical data), critical media literacy (the ability to analyse media for credibility, purpose, and quality), and digital literacy (the ability to use digital tools for accessing and synthesising information).
