Department of Medicine, College of Medicine, Chosun University, 309 Philmum-daero, Dong-gu, Gwangju 61452, Republic of Korea.
Department of Preventive Medicine, College of Medicine, Chosun University, 309 Philmum-daero, Dong-gu, Gwangju 61452, Republic of Korea.
Health Promot Int. 2023 Oct 1;38(5). doi: 10.1093/heapro/daad138.
This study aimed to verify the relationship between the level of understanding of health information and health behaviors among Korean adults. In total, 228 984 adults who participated in the 2021 Korea Community Health Survey were included. Participants were divided into three groups according to age (19-44, 45-64 and 65+). The ability to understand verbal and written health information was included, and its association with health behaviors, including smoking, alcohol consumption and preventive health service uptake, was assessed. Associations between the ability to understand health information and health behaviors were analyzed using chi-squared tests and multiple logistic regression analyses. Approximately 22.7% and 20% of the participants responded that verbal and written health information were easy to understand, respectively, with significant differences by age group. Compared to those with easy-to-understand verbal health information, those with difficulty in understanding had a higher risk of current cigarette smoking and monthly drinking and were less likely to engage in more than moderate physical activity, walking, influenza vaccination in 1 year, cancer examination in 2 years and medical examination in 2 years. Difficulty in understanding or no interest in written health information was also associated with unhealthy behaviors. A strong ability to understand health information is related to positive health behaviors. However, there are differences in the associations by age group, which should be considered when establishing a health literacy improvement strategy. These findings could promote health literacy and ultimately contribute to helping individuals make better choices for positive health behaviors.
本研究旨在验证韩国成年人对健康信息的理解水平与健康行为之间的关系。共有 228984 名成年人参与了 2021 年韩国社区健康调查，他们被分为三个年龄组（19-44 岁、45-64 岁和 65 岁以上）。参与者的口头和书面健康信息理解能力被纳入考量，并评估其与吸烟、饮酒和预防保健服务利用等健康行为的关联。采用卡方检验和多因素逻辑回归分析评估健康信息理解能力与健康行为之间的关联。大约 22.7%和 20%的参与者分别表示口头和书面健康信息容易理解，且不同年龄组之间存在显著差异。与容易理解口头健康信息的人相比，难以理解的人当前吸烟和每月饮酒的风险更高，且更不可能进行适度以上的身体活动、步行、1 年内接种流感疫苗、2 年内进行癌症检查和 2 年内进行体检。难以理解或对书面健康信息不感兴趣也与不健康行为有关。较强的健康信息理解能力与积极的健康行为有关。然而，不同年龄组的关联存在差异，在制定健康素养提升策略时应考虑到这些差异。这些发现可以促进健康素养，最终有助于帮助个人做出积极健康行为的选择。
