The Status of Health Literacy in Students Aged 6 to 18 Old Years: A Systematic Review Study
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Abstract
Background: Adolescents and children are a core target population for health literacy (HL) studies and practice. There is limited knowledge regarding the HL skills and abilities that help young people and children in making health decisions. This study aimed to evaluate the status of HL in ongoing school students.
Methods: Literature searching was performed using nine databases (Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, Iranmedex, Magiran, Scientific Information Database) without restriction in time until January 2019, and database searches were supplemented with reference hand searches and gray literature. Cross-sectional and experimental studies with focuses on validated measures of HL in ongoing students were included.
Results: This systematic review of identified 17 studies and 199714 samples specifically studied on ongoing school students aged 6-18 years. Students and their mothers have a moderate level of HL in four dimensions of menstrual health, physical activity, breast self-test, and iron deficiency anemia, and most of them have a high level of HL only in terms of nutrition. The relationship of HL with health outcomes, health promotion behaviors, self-efficacy, self-mutilating behaviors, and self-care abilities was statistically significant. HL status is related to parents’ education level, socio-economic determinants (culture, family income, and environmental contextual factors), age groups, and media/digital communication channels.
Conclusion: This review identified seven main determinates that significantly affect HL status in the target group. This systematic review shows most of the ongoing school students had an inadequate level of HL skills. HL strategies have a potential impact on improving students’ health behaviors and life quality.
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8. Paakkari O, Torppa M, Villberg J, et al (2018). Subjective health literacy among school-aged children. Health Education, 118:182-195.
9. Eshghizadeh M, Akbari S, Majidi F, Khalili F (2020). Relationship between health literacy and lifestyle in patients at risk and with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Journal of Health Literacy, 5:61-68.
10. Lael-Monfared E, Tehrani H, Moghaddam ZE, et al (2019). Health literacy, knowledge and self-care behaviors to take care of diabetic foot in low-income individuals: Application of extended parallel process model. Diabetes Metab Syndr, 13(2):1535-1541.
11. Tavakoly Sany SB, Peyman N, Behzhad F, et al (2018). Health providers’ communication skills training affects hypertension outcomes. Med Teach, 40(2):154-163.
12. Perry EL (2014). Health literacy in adolescents: an integrative review. J Spec Pediatr Nurs, 19(3):210-8.
13. Jafari A (2020). The relationship between health literacy and general health of staff of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences. Journal of Health Literacy, 5:23-31.
14. Charoghchian Khorasani E, Peyman N, Esmaily H (2017). Relations between breastfeeding self-efficacy and maternal health literacy among pregnant women. Evidence Based Care Journal, 6:18-25.
15. Borzekowski D (2009). Considering children and health literacy: a theoretical approach. Pediatrics, 124:S282-8.
16. Bröder J, Okan O, Bauer U, et al (2017). Health literacy in childhood and youth: a systematic review of definitions and models. BMC Public Health, 17(1):361.
17. Yu X, Yang T, Wang S, Zhang X (2012). Study on student health literacy gained through health education in elementary and middle schools in China. Health Education Journal, 71(4):452-460.
18. Vakili R, Yazdan Bakhsh M, Vahedian M, et al (2015). The effect of zinc supplementation on linear growth and growth factors in primary schoolchildren in the suburbs mashhad, iran. Int J Pediatr, 3:1-7.
19. Park A, Eckert TL, Zaso MJ, et al (2017). Associations between health literacy and health behaviors among urban high school students. J Sch Health, 87(12):885-893.
20. Saeedy Golluche F, Jalili Z, Tavakoli R, ghanbari s (2017). The Study of Relationship Between Health Literacy and Nutritional Practice in High School Adolescents in Tehran. Iran J Health Educ Health Promot, 5(3):224-230.
21. Tavakoly Sany SB, Peyman N, Zadehahmad Z, et al (2019). Effect of educational interventions on health literacy in patients with heart failure. International Journal of Health Promotion and Education, 57:23-36.
22. Peyman N, Oakley D (2011). Married Iranian women's knowledge, attitude and sense of self-efficacy about oral contraceptives: focus group discussion. J Reprod Infertil, 12:281-8.
23. Peyman N, Rezai-Rad M, Tehrani H, et al (2018). Digital Media-based Health Intervention on the promotion of Women’s physical activity: a quasi-experimental study. BMC Public Health, 18(1):134.
24. Zhang S-c, Tao F-b, Wu X-y, et al (2016). Low health literacy and psychological symptoms potentially increase the risks of non-suicidal self-injury in Chinese middle school students. BMC Psychiatry, 16(1):327.
25. Lam LT (2014). Mental health literacy and mental health status in adolescents: a population-based survey. Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health, 8:26.
26. Aghamolaei T, Hosseini Z, Hosseini F, Ghanbarnejad A (2016). The Relationship between health literacy and health promoting behaviors in students. J Prevent Med, 3:36-43.
27. Olyani S, Tehrani H, Esmaily H, et al (2017). Assessment of health literacy with the Newest Vital Sign and its correlation with body mass index in female adolescent students. Int J Adolesc Med Health, doi: 10.1515/ijamh-2017-0103.
28. Khajouei R, Salehi F (2017). Health Literacy among Iranian High School Students. Am J Health Behav, 41(2):215-222.
29. Moher D, Shamseer L, Clarke M, et al (2015). Preferred reporting items for systematic review and meta-analysis protocols (PRISMA-P) 2015 statement. BMJ, 349:g7647.
30. Leeflang MM, Deeks JJ, Gatsonis C, et al (2008). Systematic reviews of diagnostic test accuracy. Ann Intern Med, 149(12):889-897.
31. Ajam AA, Moradi M (2017). Relationship between Self-Compassion and Health Literacy in First Grade High School Students in Gonabad City. J Educ Community Health, 4(3): 44-51.
32. Chari R, Warsh J, Ketterer T, et al (2014). Association between health literacy and child and adolescent obesity. Patient Educ Couns, 94(1):61-6.
33. Rocha PC, Rocha DC, Lemos SMA (2017). Functional health literacy and quality of life of high-school adolescents in state schools in Belo Horizonte. Codas, 29(4):e20160208.
34. Shabi IN, Oyewusi FO (2018). Health Literacy and Internet Health Information Use among In-school Adolescents in Osun State, South-West, Nigeria. Journal of Consumer Health on the Internet, 22:25-41.
35. Shih S-F, Liu C-H, Liao L-L, Osborne RH (2016). Health literacy and the determinants of obesity: a population-based survey of sixth grade school children in Taiwan. BMC Public Health, 16:280.
36. Vongxay V, Albers F, Thongmixay S, et al (2019). Sexual and reproductive health literacy of school adolescents in Lao PDR. PLoS One, 14(1): e0209675.
37. Saedi F, Panahi R (2017). The Survey of association between health literacy and BMI among adolescents. Journal of Health Literacy, 2(1):22-30.
38. Olyani S, Peyman N (2016). Assessing Health Literacy and Its Relationship with Using Cell Phone among Adolescents. Health Education & Health Promotion, 4:47-58.
39. Ismail AF, Ardini YD, Mohamad N, Bakar HA (2018). Association between parental oral health literacy and children's oral health status. Latin American Journal of Hypertension, 13 (3): 312-316.
40. Saeedi Koupai M, Motaghi M (2017). Comparing Health Literacy in High School Female Students and Their Mothers Regarding Women’s Health. Journal of Health Literacy, 1:220-229.
41. Brady G, Lowe P, Lauritzen SO (2015). Children, health and well-being: Policy debates and lived experience. ed. John Wiley & Sons.
42. Ghahremani L, Alipoor M, Amoee S, Keshavarzi S (2017). Health promoting behaviors and self-efficacy of physical activity during pregnancy: an interventional study. International Journal of Women's Health and Reproduction, 5(3):181-185.
43. Rezayi M, Heng LY, Abdi MM, Noran N, Esmaeili C (2013). A thermodynamic study on the complex formation between tris (2-Pyridyl) methylamine (tpm) with Fe 2, Fe 3, Cu 2 and Cr 3 cations in water, acetonitrile binary solutions using the conductometric method. International Journal of Electrochemical Science, 8(5):6922-6932.
44. Khoshnudi M, Safari A, Vahedian-Shahroodi M, et al (2019). The Relationship between Health Literacy and Quality of Life in Nurses of hospitals of Kashmar in 2018. Journal of Health Literacy, 4:9-17.
2. Berkman ND, Davis TC, McCormack L (2010). Health literacy: what is it? Journal of Health Communication, 15:9-19.
3. Simon AK, Rao A, Rajesh G, et al (2018). Influence of oral health literacy on the oral health status of school teachers in Mangalore, India. Journal of Indian Association of Public Health Dentistry, 16:127-132.
4. DeWalt DA, Berkman ND, Sheridan S, et al (2004). Literacy and health outcomes. J Gen Intern Med, 19(12): 1228–1239.
5. Griffey RT, Kennedy SK, D'Agostino McGowan L, et al (2014). Is low health literacy associated with increased emergency department utilization and recidivism? Acad Emerg Med, 21(10):1109-15.
6. Keim-Malpass J, Letzkus LC, Kennedy C (2015). Parent/caregiver health literacy among children with special health care needs: a systematic review of the literature. BMC Pediatr, 15:92.
7. Charoghchian Khorasani E, Peyman N, Esmaily H (2019). Effect of education based on the theory of self-efficacy and health literacy strategies on exclusive breastfeeding: A randomized clinical trial. Koomesh, 21(4):633-638.
8. Paakkari O, Torppa M, Villberg J, et al (2018). Subjective health literacy among school-aged children. Health Education, 118:182-195.
9. Eshghizadeh M, Akbari S, Majidi F, Khalili F (2020). Relationship between health literacy and lifestyle in patients at risk and with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Journal of Health Literacy, 5:61-68.
10. Lael-Monfared E, Tehrani H, Moghaddam ZE, et al (2019). Health literacy, knowledge and self-care behaviors to take care of diabetic foot in low-income individuals: Application of extended parallel process model. Diabetes Metab Syndr, 13(2):1535-1541.
11. Tavakoly Sany SB, Peyman N, Behzhad F, et al (2018). Health providers’ communication skills training affects hypertension outcomes. Med Teach, 40(2):154-163.
12. Perry EL (2014). Health literacy in adolescents: an integrative review. J Spec Pediatr Nurs, 19(3):210-8.
13. Jafari A (2020). The relationship between health literacy and general health of staff of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences. Journal of Health Literacy, 5:23-31.
14. Charoghchian Khorasani E, Peyman N, Esmaily H (2017). Relations between breastfeeding self-efficacy and maternal health literacy among pregnant women. Evidence Based Care Journal, 6:18-25.
15. Borzekowski D (2009). Considering children and health literacy: a theoretical approach. Pediatrics, 124:S282-8.
16. Bröder J, Okan O, Bauer U, et al (2017). Health literacy in childhood and youth: a systematic review of definitions and models. BMC Public Health, 17(1):361.
17. Yu X, Yang T, Wang S, Zhang X (2012). Study on student health literacy gained through health education in elementary and middle schools in China. Health Education Journal, 71(4):452-460.
18. Vakili R, Yazdan Bakhsh M, Vahedian M, et al (2015). The effect of zinc supplementation on linear growth and growth factors in primary schoolchildren in the suburbs mashhad, iran. Int J Pediatr, 3:1-7.
19. Park A, Eckert TL, Zaso MJ, et al (2017). Associations between health literacy and health behaviors among urban high school students. J Sch Health, 87(12):885-893.
20. Saeedy Golluche F, Jalili Z, Tavakoli R, ghanbari s (2017). The Study of Relationship Between Health Literacy and Nutritional Practice in High School Adolescents in Tehran. Iran J Health Educ Health Promot, 5(3):224-230.
21. Tavakoly Sany SB, Peyman N, Zadehahmad Z, et al (2019). Effect of educational interventions on health literacy in patients with heart failure. International Journal of Health Promotion and Education, 57:23-36.
22. Peyman N, Oakley D (2011). Married Iranian women's knowledge, attitude and sense of self-efficacy about oral contraceptives: focus group discussion. J Reprod Infertil, 12:281-8.
23. Peyman N, Rezai-Rad M, Tehrani H, et al (2018). Digital Media-based Health Intervention on the promotion of Women’s physical activity: a quasi-experimental study. BMC Public Health, 18(1):134.
24. Zhang S-c, Tao F-b, Wu X-y, et al (2016). Low health literacy and psychological symptoms potentially increase the risks of non-suicidal self-injury in Chinese middle school students. BMC Psychiatry, 16(1):327.
25. Lam LT (2014). Mental health literacy and mental health status in adolescents: a population-based survey. Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health, 8:26.
26. Aghamolaei T, Hosseini Z, Hosseini F, Ghanbarnejad A (2016). The Relationship between health literacy and health promoting behaviors in students. J Prevent Med, 3:36-43.
27. Olyani S, Tehrani H, Esmaily H, et al (2017). Assessment of health literacy with the Newest Vital Sign and its correlation with body mass index in female adolescent students. Int J Adolesc Med Health, doi: 10.1515/ijamh-2017-0103.
28. Khajouei R, Salehi F (2017). Health Literacy among Iranian High School Students. Am J Health Behav, 41(2):215-222.
29. Moher D, Shamseer L, Clarke M, et al (2015). Preferred reporting items for systematic review and meta-analysis protocols (PRISMA-P) 2015 statement. BMJ, 349:g7647.
30. Leeflang MM, Deeks JJ, Gatsonis C, et al (2008). Systematic reviews of diagnostic test accuracy. Ann Intern Med, 149(12):889-897.
31. Ajam AA, Moradi M (2017). Relationship between Self-Compassion and Health Literacy in First Grade High School Students in Gonabad City. J Educ Community Health, 4(3): 44-51.
32. Chari R, Warsh J, Ketterer T, et al (2014). Association between health literacy and child and adolescent obesity. Patient Educ Couns, 94(1):61-6.
33. Rocha PC, Rocha DC, Lemos SMA (2017). Functional health literacy and quality of life of high-school adolescents in state schools in Belo Horizonte. Codas, 29(4):e20160208.
34. Shabi IN, Oyewusi FO (2018). Health Literacy and Internet Health Information Use among In-school Adolescents in Osun State, South-West, Nigeria. Journal of Consumer Health on the Internet, 22:25-41.
35. Shih S-F, Liu C-H, Liao L-L, Osborne RH (2016). Health literacy and the determinants of obesity: a population-based survey of sixth grade school children in Taiwan. BMC Public Health, 16:280.
36. Vongxay V, Albers F, Thongmixay S, et al (2019). Sexual and reproductive health literacy of school adolescents in Lao PDR. PLoS One, 14(1): e0209675.
37. Saedi F, Panahi R (2017). The Survey of association between health literacy and BMI among adolescents. Journal of Health Literacy, 2(1):22-30.
38. Olyani S, Peyman N (2016). Assessing Health Literacy and Its Relationship with Using Cell Phone among Adolescents. Health Education & Health Promotion, 4:47-58.
39. Ismail AF, Ardini YD, Mohamad N, Bakar HA (2018). Association between parental oral health literacy and children's oral health status. Latin American Journal of Hypertension, 13 (3): 312-316.
40. Saeedi Koupai M, Motaghi M (2017). Comparing Health Literacy in High School Female Students and Their Mothers Regarding Women’s Health. Journal of Health Literacy, 1:220-229.
41. Brady G, Lowe P, Lauritzen SO (2015). Children, health and well-being: Policy debates and lived experience. ed. John Wiley & Sons.
42. Ghahremani L, Alipoor M, Amoee S, Keshavarzi S (2017). Health promoting behaviors and self-efficacy of physical activity during pregnancy: an interventional study. International Journal of Women's Health and Reproduction, 5(3):181-185.
43. Rezayi M, Heng LY, Abdi MM, Noran N, Esmaeili C (2013). A thermodynamic study on the complex formation between tris (2-Pyridyl) methylamine (tpm) with Fe 2, Fe 3, Cu 2 and Cr 3 cations in water, acetonitrile binary solutions using the conductometric method. International Journal of Electrochemical Science, 8(5):6922-6932.
44. Khoshnudi M, Safari A, Vahedian-Shahroodi M, et al (2019). The Relationship between Health Literacy and Quality of Life in Nurses of hospitals of Kashmar in 2018. Journal of Health Literacy, 4:9-17.
| Files | ||
| Issue | Vol 50 No 3 (2021) | |
| Section | Review Article(s) | |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.18502/ijph.v50i3.5584 | |
| Keywords | ||
| Public health Systematic review Schools Children Adolescent Health literacy | ||
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How to Cite
1.
JAFARI A, TAVAKOLY SANY SB, PEYMAN N. The Status of Health Literacy in Students Aged 6 to 18 Old Years: A Systematic Review Study. Iran J Public Health. 2021;50(3):448-458.
