Low health literacy affects the development of kidney disease.

What is it about?

Low health literacy is the decreased ability to deal with information related to one’s health and has negative effects on chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients. Our study showed that low health literacy was associated with the onset of CKD in people older than 65, and that this association was partially explained by the presence of high BMI. Moreover, the share of low health literacy was higher among individuals with worse renal function. These results suggest that measures to address low health literacy, notably regarding the control of BMI, could prevent the development of CKD.

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Why is it important?

This was the first study to assess the association between low health literacy and CKD onset, as well as the mediation role of CKD risk factors. Furthermore, this study used a community-dwelling sample, with a majority of participants with milder renal impairment. These characteristics enable the evaluation of disease-related factors focused on earlier stages of CKD, where prevention measures might be more efficient, and enhances the external validity of the results