Introduction To measure Health literacy (HL) as proposed in the context of the European Health Literacy Survey/questionnaire (HLS-EU-Q), the Health Literacy for Children and Adolescents (HLCA) Consortium (GE) adapted it for children. A trans-cultural adaptation and validation to Portuguese (HLS-EU-PTc), will supply policy makers, experts and health professionals with information that can promote healthier communities while fighting health disparities. Methods After permission was granted from the HLCA Consortium the TRAPD model was used (eg parallel translation, focus groups, two back translations). An assessment and pretesting of HLS-EU-PTc was done with 16 children for cognitive testing. A qualitative explanatory (n = 16) and quantitative, cross-sectional study (n = 82), age mean 13, SD 0.96, from Portugal (mainland) was implemented for proceed with the validation process. A variety of measures were obtained like internal consistency and mean scores. Results Preliminary results for evaluation of the psychometric properties of the HLS-EU-PTc show satisfactory internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha coefficient 0.87). In a scale from 1 (very difficult) to 4 (very easy) for indicators of the HLS-EU-PTc, we have a mean of 3.25 and a SD of .478. Conclusions This is the first study to examine the feasibility of a Portuguese version (HLS-EU-PTc) of the HLS-EU-Q adapted for children and it indicates high internal consistency and level of self-reported HL. The usefulness of the HLS-EU-PTc instrument can be further discussed while planning public health policy strategies from the HL standpoint. The validated HLS-EU-PTc version of the HLS-EU-Qc survey, with the user’s manual can be accessed at www.literacia-saude.info.

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Healthy lifestyles are commonly associated with improved physical and mental health. Sleep patterns, nutrition, physical exercise, consumption of psychoactive substances, among others, can strongly influence positive mental health. The aims are: characterize lifestyles based on positive mental health clusters, considering the cross-sectional cohort sample of higher education students, and analyse the lifestyles associated with positive mental health. A cross-sectional, descriptive, correlational and multicentric study of quantitative approach was conducted. The Positive Mental Health Questionnaire was applied. Through the k-means method, four clusters were obtained based on positive mental health levels. The sample of 3647 higher education students was mostly female (78.8%), single (89.5%), with an average age of 23 years (SD = 6.68). Differences were found between clusters based on the sociodemographic characteristics and lifestyles. Findings in Cluster 1 were highlighted because they included students with a higher level of positive mental health, which was associated with greater satisfaction in affective relationships, higher recreational and sports activities, better sleep quality, a healthy diet, and lower medication and illicit drugs consumption. These key findings emphasize the promotion of healthy lifestyles and highlight the importance of positive mental health in promoting the health of higher education students.

Positive mental health and mental health literacy are two main concepts to ensure an individual and social state of mental health and well-being. A scoping review of the scientific literature published in the field of health sciences was conducted to identify the relationship between mental health literacy and the positive mental health of family caregivers. A research expression was used to search for articles in health databases, respecting the main topics of the Participants/Concept/Context (PCC) framework. A total of eight articles were included from the 2830 initially identified using the PRISMA Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) process. It was noticeable that none of the studies related positive mental health and mental health literacy of caregivers. Nevertheless, it was possible to identify predictors of mental health and self-efficacy, such as burden and a lack of information about and support in the process of care. Caregivers’ quality of life, self-esteem and confidence are also important positive mental health predictors that are closely related to health literacy. The knowledge of these factors can contribute to the reduction in negative determinants of mental health of caregivers and the resolution of strategies to meet caregivers’ needs.