What's health literacy? Educate yourself on how to be the best steward of your body

Mark A. Mahoney
·3 min read
Khari King, a second-year medical student at the FSU College of Medicine, explains how a vision test is conducted during the Teddy Bear Clinic at FSU’s Childcare and Early Learning Program.
Khari King, a second-year medical student at the FSU College of Medicine, explains how a vision test is conducted during the Teddy Bear Clinic at FSU’s Childcare and Early Learning Program.

As October moves on and we move deeper into the fall, let’s take stock of our understanding of health literacy.

October has been designated as health literacy awareness month — a time to promote awareness and to work on ways to solve health literacy problems. It provides an opportunity to better understand the importance of being health literate.

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There is an inordinate amount of misinformation (as well as some very good research-backed sources) which needs to be deciphered by the public as well as other ways that individuals, health care providers and others can play important roles in helping to achieve better health literacy.

The intent of today’s column is to provide a general overview on health literacy and provide some additional resources to better understand the crucial role of being health literate to help achieve a better quality of life through a healthier lifestyle.

What is health literacy?

The definition of health literacy was updated in August 2020 with the release of the U.S. government’s Healthy People 2030 initiative. The update addresses personal health literacy and organizational health literacy and provides the following definitions:

  • Personal health literacy is the degree to which individuals have the ability to find, understand, and use information and services to inform health-related decisions and actions for themselves and others.

  • Organizational health literacy is the degree to which organizations equitably enable individuals to find, understand, and use information and services to inform health-related decisions and actions for themselves and others.

The new definitions:

  • Emphasize people’s ability to use health information rather than just understand it

  • Focus on the ability to make “well-informed” decisions rather than “appropriate” ones

  • Acknowledge that organizations have a responsibility to address health literacy

  • Incorporate a public health perspective

From a public health perspective, the organizational definition acknowledges that health literacy is connected to health equity. Health equity is the attainment of the highest level of health for all people. We will achieve health equity when everyone has the opportunity to be as healthy as possible.

Which factors can affect health literacy?

Many different factors can affect a person's health literacy, including their:

  • Knowledge of medical words

  • Understanding of how the health care system works

  • Ability to communicate with health care providers

  • Ability to find health information, which may require computer skills

  • Reading, writing, and number skills

  • Personal factors, such as age, income, education, language abilities, and culture

  • Physical or mental limitations

Many of the same people who are at risk for limited health literacy also have health disparities. Health disparities are health differences between different groups of people. These groups may be based on age, race, gender, or other factors.

The 13 members of the 2022 Cohort of Youth Health Leadership enjoy their achievements at the Tallahassee Earth Day Festival.
The 13 members of the 2022 Cohort of Youth Health Leadership enjoy their achievements at the Tallahassee Earth Day Festival.

Why is health literacy important?

Health literacy is important because it can affect your ability to:

  • Make good decisions about your health

  • Get the medical care you need. This includes preventative care, which is care to prevent disease.

  • Take your medicines correctly

  • Manage a disease, especially a chronic disease

  • Lead a healthy lifestyle

Health literacy can help us prevent health problems, protect our health, and better manage health problems when they arise.

Thanks to the CDC and MedlinePlus for much of the content in this column.


Reference/additional resources

Check out the U.S. government’s report which focuses on health literacy at health.gov/healthypeople

A good resource with a lot of detailed information on health literacy can be accessed at MedLinePlus (through the National Library of Medicine) at medlineplus.gov/healthliteracy

Finding and evaluating credible health information online is an important one.  Check out the following resource to assist you: openmd.com/guide

Mark A. Mahoney, Ph.D. has been a Registered Dietitian/Nutritionist for over 30 years and completed graduate studies in Nutrition & Public Health at Columbia University. He can be reached at marqos69@hotmail.com.

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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Health Literacy Awareness: Act to get information for better health