Journal of Health Literacy

Journal of Health Literacy

The Relationship between Health Literacy and Body Mass Index among Female Adolescent: A Cross-sectional Study

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Akram Varmazyar 1
Parvaneh Aghajari 2
Farnaz Rahmani 3
Mina Jafarizadeh 4
Mina Hosseinzadeh 5
1 MSc Student, Department of community health nursing, nursing and midwifery Faculty, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
2 PhD, Assistant Professor, Department of pediatric nursing, nursing and midwifery Faculty, Maragheh University of Medical Sciences, Maragheh, Iran.
3 PhD, Assistant Professor, Department of mental health and psychiatric nursing, nursing and midwifery Faculty, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
4 Instructor, Master of community health nursing, Nursing education group, Sarab Faculty of Medical Sciences, Sarab, Iran.
5 Associate Professor, Department of community health nursing, Nursing and midwifery Faculty, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
10.22038/jhl.2024.79751.1569
Abstract
Background and Objective: Health literacy (HL) is a key determinant of health-related behaviors and may play a crucial role in preventing obesity. This study investigates to determine body mass index (BMI) status of female adolescent and its association with HL.

Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 1117 female adolescents aged 12-17 in schools of Tabriz, Iran in 2022. Sampling method was multi-stage clustered random sampling. HL was assessed using the HELMA questionnaire, and BMI was calculated using height and weight measurements. Data were analyzed using univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis by SPSS software version 16. The level of significance was considered <0.05.

Results: The mean HL score was 165.42 (26.42) (Range score: 44-205), indicating relatively adequate level of HL. However, 24.2% of the participants had inadequate or insufficient HL. 18.4% of students were overweight and 6.3% were obese. Univariate logistic regression analysis showed that age, father's education, mother's education and HL were significantly associated with obesity/overweight in girls (P<0.2). In the multivariable logistic regression model, girls with inadequate HL had 1.87 times higher odds of obesity/overweight compared to those with excellent HL (P=0.04, OR=1.87, 95% CI: 1.12-3.14).

Conclusion: This study found a significant negative association between HL and BMI among female adolescents. Interventions to improve HL can be considered as an effective strategy for preventing obesity and overweight in this population group.
Keywords
Health literacy
Body Mass Index
Girls
Obesity
Adolescents

Acknowledgements: This study was approved by the research deputy of Tabriz University of Medical Sciences. The cooperation and assistance of the students who participated in this study are hereby appreciated.


Availability of data and materials: The datasets used and/or analyzed in the current study are available through the corresponding author for a scientific use such as replication.


Conflict of interest: Authors declare no competing interests.


Consent for publication: Not applicable.


Ethics approval and consent to participate: The present research project has been approved by the Vice-Chancellor for Research and the Ethics Committee of Tabriz University of Medical Sciences with the code (ethics code: ID IR.TBZMED.REC.1399.986). The research goals, anonymity of participants, their voluntary participation, and the study information, were first verbally explained, then read and signed on a written informed consent and the research method followed the Helsinki Declaration.


Funding: This research study was supported by the Tabriz University of Medical Sciences. The funding source was not involved in the design, data collection, data analysis, and manuscript development.


Authors’ contributions: FR has contributed to the conception, design, data analysis, manuscript preparation, editing and review. PA contributed to the design, data analysis, manuscript editing and review. MH did the data analysis, manuscript preparation, editing and review. AV have made contributions to the conception, design, acquisition, data collection and prepared the first draft. MJ Contributed to drafting and editing. MH revised the final draft of manuscript. All Authors have read and approved the final manuscript.

 

Open Access Policy: This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. To view a copy of this licence, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

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