Understanding health literacy and digital healthy diet literacy in rural women in Türkiye: a cross-sectional study on social media use and Mediterranean diet adherence
BackgroundHealth literacy (HL) is the ability to search for, acquire, understand, interpret, and act upon basic information, concepts, and services about health to make correct and informed health decisions about. In terms of public health, low HL can lead to negative health outcomes, increased heal...
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2025-05-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Public Health |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2025.1559159/full |
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| author | Zehra Batu Sefer Kalaman Mikail Batu Zülfiye Acar Şentürk Handan Güler İplikçi Nazmi Ekin Vural İlkay Burak Taşkıran |
| author_facet | Zehra Batu Sefer Kalaman Mikail Batu Zülfiye Acar Şentürk Handan Güler İplikçi Nazmi Ekin Vural İlkay Burak Taşkıran |
| author_sort | Zehra Batu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | BackgroundHealth literacy (HL) is the ability to search for, acquire, understand, interpret, and act upon basic information, concepts, and services about health to make correct and informed health decisions about. In terms of public health, low HL can lead to negative health outcomes, increased healthcare costs, increased medical and medication errors, disruption of the treatment process, and increased mortality.MethodsThis study investigated factors associated with HL and digital healthy diet literacy (DDL), focusing on rural women using social media. This cross-sectional study included women aged 18–65 years living in rural areas in Türkiye between 01/12/2023 and 29/02/2024. The variables examined regarding HL and DDL are duration and purpose of use of the internet and social media, compliance with the Mediterranean diet, and sociodemographic characteristics. HL and DDL were evaluated using the Turkish version of HLS-SF12 and DDL scale.ResultsThe maximum score that can be obtained from the HLS-SF12 and DDL scale is 50 and the average index values of the participants were determined as 26.70 and 21.99, respectively. HL and DDL index scores were affected by the purpose and duration of internet/social media use. HL and DDL index scores were found to be higher in those who had a diet history under dietitian counseling, university graduates, those who adhered to the Mediterranean diet, and those with higher household income. In addition, it was determined that DDL index and HL index correlated with Mediterranean Diet Adherence Screener (MEDAS) score and Body Mass Index (BMI).ConclusionHL index and DDL index scores differ depending on the duration and purpose of internet use, age, presence of chronic disease, education level, and income level. It is recommended to conduct further studies evaluating the use of social media as a tool to promote HL, DDL, and healthy eating behaviors in different populations. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-c71426f3af384ee799393a0e6aaa6649 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2296-2565 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Public Health |
| spelling | doaj-art-c71426f3af384ee799393a0e6aaa66492025-08-20T02:00:59ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Public Health2296-25652025-05-011310.3389/fpubh.2025.15591591559159Understanding health literacy and digital healthy diet literacy in rural women in Türkiye: a cross-sectional study on social media use and Mediterranean diet adherenceZehra Batu0Sefer Kalaman1Mikail Batu2Zülfiye Acar Şentürk3Handan Güler İplikçi4Nazmi Ekin Vural5İlkay Burak Taşkıran6Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Nezahat Kelesoglu Faculty of Health Sciences, Necmettin Erbakan University, Konya, TürkiyeFaculty of Communication, Department of New Media and Communication, Ankara Yıldırım Beyazıt University, Ankara, TürkiyeFaculty of Social and Human Sciences, Department of Public Relations and Advertising, Necmettin Erbakan University, Konya, TürkiyeFaculty of Communication, Department of Public Relations and Advertising, Yozgat Bozok University, Yozgat, TürkiyeFaculty of Communication, Department of Public Relations and Promotion, Manisa Celal Bayar University, Manisa, TürkiyeFaculty of Communication, Department of New Media and Communication, Yozgat Bozok University, Yozgat, TürkiyeFaculty of Communication, Department of Public Relations and Advertising, İstanbul Yeni Yüzyıl University, Istanbul, TürkiyeBackgroundHealth literacy (HL) is the ability to search for, acquire, understand, interpret, and act upon basic information, concepts, and services about health to make correct and informed health decisions about. In terms of public health, low HL can lead to negative health outcomes, increased healthcare costs, increased medical and medication errors, disruption of the treatment process, and increased mortality.MethodsThis study investigated factors associated with HL and digital healthy diet literacy (DDL), focusing on rural women using social media. This cross-sectional study included women aged 18–65 years living in rural areas in Türkiye between 01/12/2023 and 29/02/2024. The variables examined regarding HL and DDL are duration and purpose of use of the internet and social media, compliance with the Mediterranean diet, and sociodemographic characteristics. HL and DDL were evaluated using the Turkish version of HLS-SF12 and DDL scale.ResultsThe maximum score that can be obtained from the HLS-SF12 and DDL scale is 50 and the average index values of the participants were determined as 26.70 and 21.99, respectively. HL and DDL index scores were affected by the purpose and duration of internet/social media use. HL and DDL index scores were found to be higher in those who had a diet history under dietitian counseling, university graduates, those who adhered to the Mediterranean diet, and those with higher household income. In addition, it was determined that DDL index and HL index correlated with Mediterranean Diet Adherence Screener (MEDAS) score and Body Mass Index (BMI).ConclusionHL index and DDL index scores differ depending on the duration and purpose of internet use, age, presence of chronic disease, education level, and income level. It is recommended to conduct further studies evaluating the use of social media as a tool to promote HL, DDL, and healthy eating behaviors in different populations.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2025.1559159/fullhealth literacydigital healthy diet literacysocial mediawomenMediterranean diet |
| spellingShingle | Zehra Batu Sefer Kalaman Mikail Batu Zülfiye Acar Şentürk Handan Güler İplikçi Nazmi Ekin Vural İlkay Burak Taşkıran Understanding health literacy and digital healthy diet literacy in rural women in Türkiye: a cross-sectional study on social media use and Mediterranean diet adherence Frontiers in Public Health health literacy digital healthy diet literacy social media women Mediterranean diet |
| title | Understanding health literacy and digital healthy diet literacy in rural women in Türkiye: a cross-sectional study on social media use and Mediterranean diet adherence |
| title_full | Understanding health literacy and digital healthy diet literacy in rural women in Türkiye: a cross-sectional study on social media use and Mediterranean diet adherence |
| title_fullStr | Understanding health literacy and digital healthy diet literacy in rural women in Türkiye: a cross-sectional study on social media use and Mediterranean diet adherence |
| title_full_unstemmed | Understanding health literacy and digital healthy diet literacy in rural women in Türkiye: a cross-sectional study on social media use and Mediterranean diet adherence |
| title_short | Understanding health literacy and digital healthy diet literacy in rural women in Türkiye: a cross-sectional study on social media use and Mediterranean diet adherence |
| title_sort | understanding health literacy and digital healthy diet literacy in rural women in turkiye a cross sectional study on social media use and mediterranean diet adherence |
| topic | health literacy digital healthy diet literacy social media women Mediterranean diet |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2025.1559159/full |
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