The impact of health literacy levels on risk perception of diabetes complications and self-care behavior in individuals with diabetes

Objective: This study aims to evaluate the effect of health literacy levels on risk perception related to diabetes complications and self-care behavior in individuals with type 2 diabetes aged 20-75 at six Family Health Centers in Afyonkarahisar. In this context, the study will examine the relationship between health literacy levels and risk perception of diabetes complications in diabetic individuals, aiming to determine the impact of health literacy on risk perception. Additionally, the study will investigate how health literacy levels affect diabetes self-care behaviors. Materials and Methods: This descriptive and cross-sectional study included individuals aged 20-75 with type 2 diabetes who applied to designated Family Health Centers between September and November 2024. Participants were administered a face-to-face survey, including a personal information form, the Diabetes Health Literacy Scale, the Risk Perception Scale - Diabetes Mellitus, and the Diabetes Self- Care Activities Questionnaire. Data analysis was conducted using IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows version 26.0. A p-value of <0.05 was considered statistically significant for all tests. Results: A total of 348 individuals with type 2 diabetes, aged between 27 and 75, participated in the study, with a mean age of 56.98 ± 10.9 years. Among the participants, 60.6% were female, 75% were married, 55.2% had completed primary education, 51.1% were housewives, and 52% had an income below the minimum wage. The mean duration of diabetes among participants was 10.95±8.21 years. The mean scores of the Diabetes Health Literacy Scale were 9.41±4.05 in the functional literacy subscale, 15.58±4.05 in the interactive literacy subscale, and 6.18±2.68 in the critical literacy subscale. The mean scores of the Risk Perception Scale - Diabetes Mellitus were 2.10±0.88 in the risk knowledge subscale, 1.95±0.46 in the composite risk subscale, 2.25±1.17 in the worry subscale, 2.72±0.79 in the optimism subscale, 1.98±0.61 in the personal disease risk subscale, and 1.67±0.61 in the environmental risk subscale. The mean scores of the Diabetes Self-Care Activities Questionnaire subscales were 3.20±0.97 for diet, 0.57±0.89 for exercise, 0.85±1.32 for blood glucose monitoring, and 0.33±0.66 for foot care. Conclusion: The findings indicate that health literacy levels in individuals with type 2 diabetes have a significant impact on risk perception regarding diabetes complications and self-care behaviors. These results highlight the critical importance of education and awareness programs aimed at improving health literacy in diabetic individuals for effective disease management and complication prevention.