Association of Health Literacy with the Implementation of Exercise during the Declaration of COVID-19 State of Emergency among Japanese Community-Dwelling Old-Old Adults

Are Middle-Aged and Older Adult Users of Physical Activity Monitoring Systems More Physically Active and at a Lower Risk of Locomotive Syndrome? A Cross-Sectional Web-Based Online Survey

BACKGROUND

Physical inactivity is a risk factor for locomotive syndromes and functional limitations in middle-aged and older adults. Therefore, strategies to promote physical activity should be considered. This study investigated whether users of physical activity monitors were more physically active and exhibited a lower risk of locomotive syndrome, compared with non-users.

METHODS

We analyzed data from 742 Japanese adults aged 60-79 years. The participants were surveyed for their use of physical activity monitors in their daily lives. We also assessed the prevalence of locomotive syndrome.

RESULTS

We observed significantly higher physical activity levels in users compared with non-users. Moreover, the use of a physical activity monitor was significantly associated with decreased odds of locomotive syndrome (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]=0.48). Significantly lower risk of locomotive syndrome were observed in individuals who had used a monitor for >2 years (aOR=0.42) or had set a personal step goal (aOR=0.32).

CONCLUSION

Physical activity monitoring may increase engagement in physical activity-associated behavior. Therefore, monitoring could serve as a useful tool to promote physical health in middle-aged and older adults.

Factors associated with poor health literacy in older adults: A systematic review

OBJECTIVES

To identify factors associated with poor health literacy in older adults.

METHODS

A systematic literature review was conducted, employing the descriptors "Aged" and "Health Literacy".

PROSPERO - CRD

42022350140.

RESULTS

Out of 23,500 articles screened, 176 were selected. Several factors associated with poor health literacy in older adults were identified, such as sociodemographic (e.g., advanced age, low educational level, non-white population, and others), social (e.g., poor family/social support, loneliness, social isolation, few social activities, and others), economic (e.g., lower income and/or lower socioeconomic status) and health aspects (e.g., poor health, chronic conditions, mental health challenges, hospitalizations, frailty, physical inactivity, cognitive impairment, and others).

CONCLUSIONS

The factors associated with poor health literacy in older adults identified in this review could contribute to future research, support interventions to improve health literacy, and assist professionals in planning educational activities and public policies.

The influence of health literacy and knowledge about smoking hazards on the intention to quit smoking and its intensity: an empirical study based on the data of China's health literacy investigation

OBJECTIVE

This study explored the relationship between smokers' health literacy, knowledge of smoking hazards, and their intention to quit.

METHODS

Based on data from the 2019 Health Literacy and Tobacco Use Surveillance among residents of a city in Zhejiang Province, 1120 male smokers were screened. Differential tests were used to analyze whether smokers with varying levels of health literacy and knowledge about smoking hazards differed in their intention to quit smoking and the intensity of their intention. A multi-factor logistic regression model was constructed to explore the extent of these differences.

RESULTS

Only 24.8% of smokers had higher health literacy. Among smokers, those with an intention to quit had a higher health literacy level compared to those without such intention (32.7% vs. 17.0%, p < 0.001). Health literacy levels did not differ significantly between groups with different intensity of intention to quit (34.2% vs. 31.9% vs. 30.1%, p = 0.435). About 48.7% of the smokers a higher level of knowledge about smoking hazards. It was more prevalent in the intent to quit group compared to the no intent to quit group (54.0% vs. 43.4%, p < 0.001), and the low intent to quit group had lower knowledge compared to the moderate and high intent to quit groups (49.1% vs. 56.6% vs. 63.4%, p = 0.011). After adjusting for other influences, smokers with lower health literacy were less likely to have intention to quit (OR = 0.659, p = 0.016). And the association between knowledge about smoking hazards and whether smokers have the intention to quit is no longer significant, but it significantly affects the intensity of the intention to quit among smokers who already have the intention (OR = 0.623, p = 0.005).

CONCLUSION

General health literacy may play a role in facilitating smokers' progression from the stage of no intent to quit to one of intent to quit, but a more specific understanding of the harms of smoking may be needed to increase the strength of intent to quit.

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Lifestyle and Psychosocial Behavior of Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Diseases: A Narrative Review

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has had a considerable impact on the global healthcare system and potentially the clinical course of patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Although IBD is a chronic disease, its therapy (except steroid therapy) does not increase the risk of contracting or aggravating COVID-19. However, the clinical course of patients is significantly influenced by environmental factors. Social restrictions due to the pandemic or the fear of contracting the virus have influenced lifestyle and psychosocial behaviors that may worsen the clinical course of patients with IBD. This narrative literature review summarizes the current evidence on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the lifestyle and psychosocial behaviors of patients with IBD. The COVID-19 pandemic negatively affected the lifestyle and psychosocial behaviors of patients with IBD. Furthermore, patients with IBD failed to maintain medication adherence, thus affecting the clinical course of their condition.

Dementia literacy in an ageing world

AIMS

This discursive article aims to capture and explore the most pertinent nursing aspects of dementia literacy (DL).

BACKGROUND

Older people constitute a rapidly increasing proportion of the global population, experiencing higher risk of developing chronic disease, including dementia. It is important that older adults receive and understand reliable health-related information, as age-related changes may affect the level of health literacy in an older person. It has been suggested that older adults may have poorer health literacy than younger adults, associated with poorer health outcomes. Health literacy, how people receive, interpret and act on health information, play a significant role in dementia-related disorders, both as a possible predicter of onset of dementia and as a potential modifier of cognitive decline. Dementia literacy constitutes one aspect of health literacy in relation to nursing care, related to knowledge of dementia-related disorders and approaches towards older people with dementia.

DESIGN

This discursive article explores the importance of DL for the nursing profession, including dementia-related assessment, education and interventions.

METHOD

This article is informed by analysis of relevant descriptive and empirical literature and policy documents related to DL, an increasingly important aspect of dementia-related nursing care. Valid assessment tools that can accurately assess aspects an individuals' DL are examined; these have the potential to help nurses detect dementia-related symptoms. With early detection and prevention of dementia, older people may have better chance of benefiting from evolving treatment options.

CONCLUSION

Greater attention needs to be given to the issue of DL in older people, especially in terms of nursing assessment and care. Globally, increased DL-related education is urgently required to improve knowledge of this concept; this includes public awareness initiatives to better understanding this chronic condition.

IMPLICATION NURSING PRACTICE

Enhancing DL has the potential to empower older people to have greater access to healthcare services and to make more informed decisions about their health care.

PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION

No patient or public contribution, as this is a discursive article.

Satisfaction Levels of Young Urban Residents With Public Sports Services in China During the COVID-19 Epidemic

The extensive changes in public and private life caused by the ongoing COVID-19 epidemic in China have created a “new normal.” To understand urban residents’ satisfaction with public sports services under these conditions and to identify factors that influence satisfaction, urban residents in several major Chinese cities were randomly sampled with an online questionnaire to measure their level of satisfaction with public sports services in China during the COVID-19 epidemic. With the response rate of 87.9%, 703 valid questionnaires out of 800 questionnaires distributed were analyzed. A structural equation model was constructed where health literacy and the residents’ expectations were independent variables, residents’ participation was a mediating variable, and residents’ satisfaction was the dependent variable. Cronbach’s α test and Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin test confirmed that the questionnaire was reliable and valid. Survey results suggest that young urban residents’ participation in public sports services is influenced by personal health literacy and residents’ expectations. Participation serves a mediating role between health literacy and residents’ satisfaction, but not between residents’ expectations and their satisfaction. Young urban residents’ satisfaction with public sports services may be improved by increasing access to health information, improving hardware and software platforms to support those services, and catering the services to the interests of the population.

Association of self-rated health with type and frequency of social interaction during the declaration of COVID-19 state of emergency among Japanese community-dwelling oldest-old adults

AIM

To investigate whether the type and frequency of social interaction during the state of emergency due to coronavirus disease were associated with self-rated health (SRH) after the state of emergency.

METHODS

Data from a cross-sectional study were collected for 889 oldest-old adults in Bibai City, Hokkaido, Japan. In total, 612 participants (mean age: 83.0 ± 4.3 years; women: 51.8%) were included in the analysis, taking biological sex into account. The self-reported questionnaire included questions about demographic variables, SRH (July 2020, after the emergency), and the type and frequency of social interaction (March 2020, during the state of emergency).

RESULTS

There was no significant association between social interaction and SRH in men (P > 0.05). Women who had social interactions (both face-to-face and non-face-to-face) more than once a week during the state of emergency reported higher SRH after the emergency than those who did not (odds ratio 2.17, 95% confidence interval 1.07-4.41).

CONCLUSIONS

Having both types of interaction more than once a week during the state of emergency was related to higher SRH after the emergency among oldest-old women. It is suggested that having opportunities for both types of interaction at least once a week would potentially be beneficial for high SRH in women, even in situations where the declaration of a state of emergency restricts face-to-face interaction. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2022; 22: 405-411.

Declines in health literacy and health-related quality of life during the COVID-19 pandemic: a longitudinal study of the Japanese general population

BACKGROUND

During the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the importance of health literacy (HL) was addressed by public health researchers. We longitudinally examined the changes in general HL and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) between immediately before the COVID-19 outbreak and 1 year later, and how general HL before the outbreak was related to changes in HRQOL in the Japanese general population.

METHODS

Among the Japanese residents aged 20-79 years who participated in our previous study in 2017, 826 were followed-up via self-administered questionnaires in January 2020 and February 2021, for the purposes of this study. The HRQOL was measured using the SF-8, a short version of the SF-36 Health Survey, and general HL was measured using the short form of the European Health Literacy Survey Questionnaire (HL-SF12) in the 2020 and 2021 surveys.

RESULTS

The physical and mental dimensions of HRQOL as well as general HL declined significantly from immediately before the COVID-19 outbreak to 1 year later (p = .010, p < .001 and p < .001, respectively). The decline in HRQOL, especially the mental dimension, was more significant among women. A lower economic status was also related to a greater decline in HRQOL (p = .026 for the physical dimension and p = .012 for the mental dimension). Higher general HL before the COVID-19 outbreak was associated with a lesser decline in HRQOL in both the physical and mental dimensions (p = .040 and p < .001, respectively) after controlling for possible confounding variables such as gender and economic status.

CONCLUSIONS

Healthcare support is crucial for vulnerable populations during and after the pandemic. General HL may be important for attenuating the decline in HRQOL, by enabling effective use of health information and adaptive behaviors toward health threats. Further studies are needed to better understand the association between HL and HRQOL.

Association between Regular Exercise and Self-Rated Health and Sleep Quality among Adults in Japan during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Regular exercise may be associated with better self-rated health and sleep status. However, this correlation among various age groups, such as young, middle-aged, and older people, as well as during the COVID-19 pandemic, has not been examined. This study examined the correlation between regular exercise and self-rated health and sleep quality among adults in Japan during the COVID-19 pandemic. Data were collected using an online survey conducted between February 26 and 27, 2021. A total of 1410 adults in Japan (age range, 20–86 years) completed the online survey. Regular exercise was divided into: (1) more than 30 min of moderate exercise a day, (2) more than 2 days per week, and (3) continuous for 1 year or longer. Self-rated health and sleep quality were assessed using the Likert scale. After adjusting for multiple confounders, regular exercise was correlated with decreased poor self-rated health and poor sleep quality in middle-aged adults; however, no significant correlation was observed among young and older adults. The promotion of regular exercise among middle-aged people during the COVID-19 pandemic may contribute to better self-rated health and sleep quality status.