Status and determinants of health behavior knowledge among the elderly in China: a community-based cross-sectional study

BMC Public Health

Meidi Peng²  Yuantong Zang¹  Surong Wang²  Liming Zhang³  Xuefen Lan¹  Guiling Geng²  Zhiqin Yin¹ 

[1] Department of Nursing, School of Nursing, Wenzhou Medical College, Wenzhou 325035, China;Department of Nursing, School of Nursing, Nantong University, Nantong 226019, China;Wenzhou WuMa Community Health Service Center, Wenzhou 325000, China

关键词: Children;    Knowledge;    Health behavior;    The elderly;    Community;   

Others  :  1161972
DOI  :  10.1186/1471-2458-13-710

 received in 2012-12-18, accepted in 2013-05-20,  发布年份 2013

【 摘 要 】

Background

Limited studies are available on health behavior knowledge among the elderly and the interaction between the elderly and their children living with them. Using a survey of the elderly in the community and their children living with them, we explored the characteristics that determine health behavior knowledge. We also identified the influencing factors affecting such knowledge. The relationship between the health behavior knowledge of the elderly and that of their children was also investigated.

Methods

A total of 1207 elderly people were selected by multistage probability sampling (number of children of the elderly = 201). We used a self-designed behavior knowledge questionnaire (38 questions) to survey the participants. After the 38 questions were answered, the total score was determined. The group with adequate health behavior knowledge (score ≥ 24) and that with inadequate knowledge (score < 24) were distinguished by logistic regression to explain the influencing factors affecting health knowledge.

Results

On the basis of the responses to 38 questions in the survey, approximately 46.7% of elderly people were identified as having a good knowledge of health. Knowledge of the proper amount of certain foods and liquids as well as that of psychological disorder among the elderly recorded a low percentage at < 60%. Factors related to health behavior knowledge among the elderly were as follows educational attainment, past occupation, and location of residence. Participants who finished high school or higher had 6, 4, and 3 times greater odds of possessing adequate health knowledge than those who attained below primary school, primary school, and junior high school levels, respectively. Those with experience as administrative and technical personnel, workers, migrant workers, and farmers had 2.5, 2.3, 3.9, and 2.1 times greater odds of possessing adequate health knowledge, respectively, than those who were unemployed. Respondents living in the city had 3.7 times greater odds of possessing adequate health knowledge than those living in the countryside. In the stem family, the health knowledge of the elderly was significantly lower than that of their children (P < 0.001). However, the influence of their children’s knowledge upper their elder’s was relatively weak.

Conclusion

The need to improve health behavior knowledge among the Chinese elderly remains high. Medical personnel in the community should provide health education related to proper diet and alcohol intake, as well as psychological health, particularly for those elderly who only reached primary school and below, used to be unemployed, and are living in rural areas. Children of stem families should be guided to enhance their health education and contribute to the health knowledge of their elderly parents.

【 授权许可】

   
2013 Yin et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.

【 图 表 】

Figure 1.

Figure 2.

【 参考文献 】

• [1]Zhen ZS, Huo JX: Health Pedagogic [M]. Beijing: Science Press; 2008.
• [2]Zhao SY: Community Health Education and Health Promotion [M]. Beijing: Peking University Medical Press; 2011.
• [3]China industrial economy news. http://news.idoican.com.cn/zgcjxwb/html/2011-09/22/content_2618611.htm?div=−1 webcite
• [4]The 260 million Chinese people diagnosed with chronic diseases,which also caused 558 billion economic losses(1). http://www.zgjrw.com/News/2012817/home/725671106100.shtml webcite
• [5]The fourth national health health services investigation and analysis report in 2008. http://wenku.baidu.com/view/524bb5ebf8c75fbfc77db258.html webcite
• [6]Accident injury is the main reason of fall among the elder. http://news.163.com/10/0330/07/630P99FR000146BB.html webcite (2010/3/30
• [7]Wang JS, Jiang Y, Jin SG: The burdens of the six common chronic diseases among the senior people aged 65 above in China. The Service Center for Supervision and Information of Public Health 2005, 13(4):148-151.
• [8]Wang SY, Li LT: The disease burden and risk factors of falls in the aged. Chin J Epidemiol 2001, 22(4):262-264.
• [9]Tinetti ME, Williams CS: The effect of falls and fall injuries on functioning in community-dwelling older persons. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 1998, 53(2):112-119.
• [10]Zhang LL, Dalal K, Yin MM, Yuan DG, Andrews JY, Wang SM: The KAP evaluation of intervention on fall-induced injuries among elders in a safe community in Shanghai, China. PLoS ONE 2012, 7(3):e32848.
• [11]Xue XS: The Relationship among Health Behavioural Knowledge, Health Motivation, and Exercise Behaviour of College Students in Southern Taiwan [in Chinese]. Wu han: Huazhong University of Science and Technology; 2009:17.
• [12]Tian MM, Chen YC, Zhao R: Chronic disease knowledge and its determinants among chronically ill adults in rural areas of Shanxi Province in China: a cross-sectional study. BMC Public Health 2011, 11:948. BioMed Central Full Text
• [13]Niu TH, Meng XZ, Li XM, Dong LN, Li XY: Analysis on current situation and influencing factors of health knowledge among the rural elders. Chinese Primary Health Care 2010, 24(3):37-38.
• [14]Jiang R, Zhu HY, Tang WQ, Wang LF: Epidemiological investigation on health knowledge and behaviour among residents aged over 60 in Huating Town, Shanghai. Health Education and Health Promotion 2011, 6(1):10-12.
• [15]Wang XG, Zhou Y, Li F, Zhai XY: The survey about health knowledge and behaviour of the people aged 65 above in Dalian. China Contemporary Medical 2009, 47(6):95-97.
• [16]Zhang Q, Li NX: Health-related knowledge and behaviour of elderly residents in Urban Chengdu. Journal of Sichuan University (Medical Science Edition) 2007, 38(3):480-483.
• [17]Tian BC: Practical method of health education and health promotion [M]. Beijing: Beijing medical university press; 2006:216.
• [18]Miao RF: Research on the filial practice of temporary stem family. J Soc Work 2011, 8:25-27.
• [19]Cui Y, Guo MX: Health education and health promotion of old age dementia patients and their families. Modern nursing 2006, 12(10):895-896.
• [20]Xu JF: The effect of implementation of health education of diabetes patients’ families synchronous in patients quality of life. Chinese medical herald 2007, 4(12):136-137.
• [21]Statistical bulletin of national economic and social development in Nantong City. 2010. http://tjj.nantong.gov.cn/art/2011/6/17/art_11625_798341.html webcite
• [22]Statistical bulletin of national economic and social development in Wenzhou City. 2010. http://www.wenzhou.gov.cn/art/2012/7/2/art_11963_224950.html webcite
• [23]Huang WD, Sun PH: The analysis of related factors that affect the elderly health literacy. Chinese journal of gerontology 2010, 30(11):1564-1565.
• [24]Murphy HR, Wadham C, Hassler-Hurst J, Rayman G, Skinner TC, Families and Adolescents Communication and Teamwork Study (FACTS) Group: Short report: education and psychological issues randomized trial of a diabetes self-management education and family teamwork intervention in adolescents with type 1 diabetes. Diabetic Medicine 2012, 29:e249-e254.
• [25]Sixth census figures released in Wenzhou: a permanent population of 9.1221 million people. http://www.docin.com/p-482120521.html webcite
• [26]Temporary population of Nantong was more than 1 million people. http://bbs.0513.org/thread-651940-1-1.html webcite
• [27]Zheng SB, Zhu HM: Overview of geriatric medicine [M]. Shanghai: Fudan university press; 2010:8-1.
• [28]Ma J, Wang X: Health Pedagogy: [M]. Beijing: Science Press; 2006.
• [29]Knowledge. http://wenku.baidu.com/view/a66f6d333968011ca300915a.html webcite
• [30]The health promotion action planning of hundreds of millions of farmers (2006–2010). http://wenku.baidu.com/view/637bc1e8856a561252d36f58.html webcite
• [31]Guo HT, Wu WQ: The survey and nursing intervention of lifestyle among the community elderly. China Medical Herald 2007, 4(24):68-69.
• [32]Liang XQ, Sun JP, Yang ZL: The survey and analysis about the health of elderly in Dongsheng District of Ordos. China Healthcare Innovation 2012, 7(5):91-93.
• [33]Li L, Han XM, Zhu HG: Survey analysis on cognition degree of activity knowledge in the elderly patients. Nursing Journal of Chinese People’s Liberation Army 2009, 26(9A):25-27.
• [34]Li DH: The survey and research of knowledge and the risk behaviour of rural residents in Shandong with chronic diseases. Ji nan: Shandong University; 2008:49-50.
• [35]Bennett IM: The contribution of health literacy to disparities in self-rated health status and preventive health behaviour in older adults. Annals of Family Medicine 2009, 7(3):204-211.
• [36]Pignone M, DeWalt DA, Sheridan S, Berkman N, Lohr KN: Interventions to improve health outcomes for patients with low literacy. A systematic review. J Gen Intern Med 2005, 20(2):185-192.
• [37]Guo HJ, Li XN, Huang MH, Cao S: Regression analysis study on the influencing factor of the residents’ health literacy in Jiangsu Province. Jiangsu Journal of Preventive Medicine 2012, 23(1):12-14.
• [38]Zan PX, Wei HC, Wang M, Pan JY, Huang Y, Huang F: Health cognition and the needs of education of the elderly with chronic disease in rural in Anhui. Chinese Journal of Gerontology 2009, 29(19):2517-2519.
• [39]Huang WD, Sun PH: Analysis the related factors that affecting the elderly health. Chinese Journal of Gerontology 2010, 30(11):1564-1565.
• [40]Wang JH, Wang LM: The survey of knowledge attitude and behaviour of elderly resident with different jobs. Chinese Journal of Clinical Healthcare 2007, 10(4):401-402.
• [41]Yin ZQ, Yang YX, Chen LL, Tu HX, Chen J: The investigation of health status and influencing factors analysis among Zhejiang rural elderly. Public health of the People's Republic of China 2012, 28(3):293-295.
• [42]Health literacy level of Chinese residents were 6.48%, and the difference between urban and rural areas was significantly. http://news.sina.com.cn/h/2009-12-18/145219289959.shtml webcite
• [43]Wang Y, Lin M, Tang X: Review of rural Health resource allocation. Chinese Health Quality Management 2010, 17(2):82-85.
• [44]Hu QQ: The care of old people remaining in the countryside during urbanization [in Chinese]. Journal of Nanjing College for Population Programme Management 2006, 22(2):25-28.