ArticleBMC public health2024
The role of health literacy in the association between social support and self-rated health: a Danish population-based study in 10,787 individuals with a long-term condition.
Article in BMC public health, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
11 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Social vulnerability indices for proactively identifying at-risk individuals in healthcare: a systematic review.European journal of public health · 2025Pooled it
- Health Literacy, Social Support and Quality of Life in Chinese Health Examination Population.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Health Literacy and Mental Health in Adolescents: Parental and Self-Reported Cross-Sectional Data in a Bilingual Region.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Reframing Sustainable and Planetary Health Through the Fundamentals of Care: A Conceptual Nursing Perspective.Nursing inquiry · 2026Article
- Prevalence of patients with limited health literacy in rotator cuff tears and their experiences with care: a mixed-methods study.JSES international · 2026Article
- Measuring navigational and digital health literacy in individuals with long-term conditions: latent trait analyses using Rasch modelling.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- The ECHO study: compassion-focused therapy for young voice hearers and their caregivers. A pilot study.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Article
- Challenges of using generative artificial intelligence for diabetes patient education: a cross-platform analysis of the quality, readability, and actionability of text generated by large language models.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Associations of family health and perceived social support with health literacy among middle-aged and older adults with chronic diseases: a mediation and network analysis.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Health literacy on Mpox among Brazilian men who have sex with men: Findings from a national cross-sectional study.Belitung nursing journal · 2025Article
- Rehabilitation and Outcomes in Patients after Traumatic Brain Injury Admitted to the Intensive Care Unit: Results from the CENTER-TBI Study.Neurotrauma reportsArticle
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3 authors.
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Abstract
backgroundManaging a long-term condition requires higher health literacy. Social networks may play a crucial role for self-management. However, the pathway is not entirely understood. This study aimed to examine whether the association between social support and self-rated health is mediated by health literacy among individuals with a long-term condition.
methodsThis cross-sectional study used data from the "How are you?" 2021 survey in Central Denmark Region. Social support was assessed using a single question, health literacy with two dimensions from the Health Literacy Questionnaire (HLQ): 'Understanding health information' and 'Engaging with healthcare providers', and self-rated health with a single question from SF-36. Multiple logistic regression analyses were used to examine the associations, and multiple mediation analyses were performed using the Karlson-Holm-Breen method.
resultsA total of 10,787 individuals with a long-term condition were included in the study, whereas 6% (n = 595) reported a low level of social support. Both health literacy scales mediated the association between social support and self-rated health, particularly the ability to engage with healthcare providers, accounting for 25% of the variance. After adjustment for sociodemographic factors, individuals with a low level of social support had significantly higher odds of reporting difficulties in understanding health information (OR 2.53 (95% CI: 1.84-3.48)) and engaging with healthcare providers (OR 3.77 (95% CI: 2.96-4.79)).
conclusionsHealth literacy, particularly the ability to engage with healthcare providers, was a mediator between social support and self-rated health. Additionally, a low level of social support was associated with higher odds of reporting lower health literacy. These findings suggest that strategies to enhance health literacy, improve health outcomes, and reduce health inequities may benefit from strengthening individuals' social network, particularly focusing on those with limited support.
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