Relationship of preventive health practices and health literacy: a national study.

摘要

OBJECTIVE: To identify relationships between the health literacy and self-reported preventive health practices of US adults. METHODS: Measured health literacy and preventive health practices for a nationally representative sample of adults (N = 18,100) and conducted probit regression analyses after controlling for age, gender, race/ethnicity, poverty level, insurance status, self-reported health status, and oral reading fluency. RESULTS: Low literacy was associated with a decreased likelihood of using most preventive health measures under study for adults aged 65 and older, but not for adults of 2 younger age groups. CONCLUSION: The relationship between health literacy and preventive health practices varied substantially by adult age group.