Health Literacy and Media Literacy: Is There Any Relation?

Abstract

Background The health information is an important factor for improving people's health behaviors. On the other hand, media literacy plays an important role in the search and selection of valid information and resources about health. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the correlation between health literacy and media literacy. Method This study was a cross-sectional study. Random cluster sampling was used to select 700 citizens in Kerman, Iran. Health literacy for Iranian adults’ questionnaire and media literacy questionnaire were used to collect the data. Results Health literacy of 53.2% of the citizens was insufficient. Media literacy of 38.6% of the citizens was moderate and it was high in 61.3%. A significant positive correlation was found between health literacy and media literacy. Conclusion The media literacy was an important determinant factor for health literacy. The development and increase of media literacy can also increase health literacy.