title: Health literacy among older adults: a systematic literature review.
abstract: The purpose of this systematic literature review was to describe the empirical findings on health literacy in adults 65 and older. A systematic search for research studies from 1999 to early 2010 was conducted in MEDLINE and CINAHL databases. Articles were analyzed using the following foci: skills and health knowledge, functional health literacy, and health behaviors and health outcomes. Findings indicated that advancing age resulted in a significant increase in prevalence of inadequate health literacy. Further research is needed to develop evidence-based, culturally congruent interventions to improve health literacy among older adults.
authors.affiliation: The University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX, USA. zamora2@uthscsa.edu
authors.forename: Herlinda
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zamora
authors.forename: Evelyn M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Clingerman
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D057220:Health Literacy; D006801:Humans