Association of eHealth Literacy With Colorectal Cancer Knowledge and Screening Practice Among Internet Users in Japan

Abstract

BackgroundIn rapidly developing Internet-user societies, eHealth literacy has become important in promoting wellness. Although previous studies have observed that poor health literacy is associated with less knowledge and screening practice of colorectal cancer (CRC), little is known about whether eHealth literacy is associated with these variables.ObjectiveThe present study examined associations between eHealth literacy, knowledge of CRC, and CRC screening practices.MethodsData were analyzed for 2970 Japanese adults (men, 49.9%; mean age ± SD, 39.7 ± 10.9 years) who responded to an Internet-based cross-sectional survey. Knowledge of the definition of CRC, its risk factors and screening practice, previous experience of CRC screening, score on the Japanese version of the eHEALS (J-eHEALS), sociodemographic attributes (sex, age, marital status, educational attainment, and household income level), and frequency of Internet usage were obtained. Sociodemographic attributes and frequency of Internet usage were used as control variables in the multiple regression and logistic regression models.ResultseHealth literacy was positively associated with CRC knowledge (β = .116, < .001), when the covariables of both eHealth literacy and CRC knowledge were used in the multiple regression model. Moreover, after controlling for sociodemographic factors, which were significantly associated with eHealth literacy and CRC screening practice, an increase of 1 point in the eHEALS score signified that participants were 1.03 times (95% CI = 1.01–1.05) more likely to undergo CRC screening.ConclusionsInternet users with high eHealth literacy are more likely to have knowledge and previous screening practice related to CRC compared to those with low eHealth literacy.

Country-Level Socioeconomic Indicators Associated with Healthy Life Expectancy: Income, Urbanization, Schooling, and Internet Users: 2000–2012

“…The internet can be an innovative tool for delivering services to geographically isolated populations (Osborne and Patel 2013). Furthermore, internet users with high e-health literacy are more likely to have knowledge about cancer-related screening practices and to have undergone such practices compared with those with lower levels of literacy (Mitsutake et al 2012). In addition, urban residents are more likely to use the internet as their source of medical information, while rural residents rely more on healthcare providers.…”

Self-reported eHealth literacy among undergraduate nursing students in South Korea: A pilot study

“…The high eHealth literacy level is defined as above the mean (see Table 1). The criteria to determine high or low eHealth literacy in this study was based on the mean score of eHealth literacy (8 items) like other studies (Park et al, 2014;Mitsutake et al, 2012).…”

“…Xie (2011aXie ( , 2011b stated that people who have low eHealth literacy are facing a double jeopardy in managing their health. Mitsutake et al (2012) also noted that people with high eHealth literacy are more likely to have important health knowledge and seek out screening tests to prevent cancer than those who have low eHealth literacy. These evidences confirm that eHealth literacy skills are essential for patients to prevent disease and to assist them to take a more active role in health care related decisions.…”

Predictors of High eHealth Literacy in Primary Lung Cancer Survivors

“…Previous studies have determined the eHealth literacy levels of various populations including older individuals [10], HIV-positive individuals [11], or parents of children with illnesses [12]. Very few studies have categorized the eHealth literacy of cancer survivors [13] despite the low health literacy levels seen within this group.…”