Health Literacy Toolkit
A resource that provides important health
and wellness information impacting your
community.
2
Doctor’s Visits 3
Medication 8
Nutrition 12
Recipes 16
Exercise/Activity 18
Diabetes 20
Blood Pressure 24
Sodium 26
Thyroid 28
Smoking 30
Table of Contents
3
Health
Literacy
Health Literacy
“The degree to which individuals have the capacity to obtain, process
and understand basic health information needed to make appropriate
health decisions.”
(U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, n.d.)
Health literacy is important because it affects people’s
ability to:
• Navigate the healthcare system
• Share personal information with providers
• Engage in self-care and chronic disease management
• Adopt healthy behaviors
• Act on health-related news and announcements
Benefits of Health Literacy:
• Improved communication
• Better treatment adherence
• Improved self-care
• Improved health status
• Improved efficiency
• Cost savings
• Does not necessarily require additional resources
• Better health & treatment outcomes
4
What To Ask Your Doctor
5
What To Ask Your Doctor
6
Improving Your Visits
7
Improving Your Visit
8
Med
icatio
n
Medication Adherence
Medication Adherence Facts:
• Approximately 50% of people with chronic diseases do
not take medications as prescribed.
• 16% of patients fail to fill a new prescription.
• About 50% of patients stop taking a drug after 6
months
• 33%-69% of hospital readmissions are due to non-
adherence
Types of Poor Medication Adherence:
• Intentional: Trying to save money, had side
• effects, felt it wasn’t working, didn’t think it was
necessary, didn’t like taking it
• Unintentional: Forgot, ran out, away from home
9
Improving Medication Adherence
Remembering to take your medicine:
• Use of:
Pillboxes
Blister Packs
• Make it a routine
Set alarms
Phone reminder
Medication log
10
Medication and Your Hair Did you know that it is a good practice to talk to
your stylist about your medications? Many pre-
scription medications can impact your hairs
health especially when accompanied by certain
styling treatments.
Certain medications can contribute to excess hair
growth, changes in hair color or texture, or
even hair loss.
Your stylist may be able to recommend special
care for your hair based on your specific needs.
What types of medications cause hair loss?
Many different types of medicines are thought to cause hair loss,
including some of the following types of medications:
• Acne medications
• Antibiotics and antifungal medi-
cations
• Antidepressants
• Oral contraceptives
• Anticoagulants (' blood thinners')
• Cholesterol-lowering medications
• Immunosuppressant medications
• Chemotherapy medications
• Anticonvulsants (epilepsy medica-
tions)
• Anti-hypertensives (high blood
pressure medications)
• Hormone replacement therapy -
estrogen or progesterone for
women, androgens
and testosterone for men
• Interferons
• Mood stabilizers
• Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory
medications ( NSAIDs)
• Parkinson's disease medications
• Steroids
• Thyroid medications
11
Medication and Your Hair
12
Benefits of Cooking at Home vs. Take Out
• We cook using less calories, so ultimately it’s healthier – AND you
know what’s in your food.
• The cost of cooking at home is much less than if you were to go out
for dinner. A typical meal for 4 can be prepared for less than $30.
•
Nu
tritio
n
Nutrition
Portion Distortion – Since
the 1950’s, portion sizes have
more than doubled according
to the US Department of
Agriculture
13
Nutrition
14
Key Tips For Improving Your Nutrition:
• Make half of your plate fruits and veggies.
• Make at least half of your grains whole.
• Switch to skim or 1% milk.
• Vary your protein food choices.
Nutrition
Healthy Eating Plate & Healthy Eating Pyramid The Healthy Eating Plate, created by nutrition experts at Harvard School of Pub-lic Health and editors at Harvard Health Publications, was designed to address deficiencies in the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)’s MyPlate. The Healthy Eating Plate provides detailed guidance, in a simple format, to help people make the best eating choices.
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)’s
15
Nutrition & Activity
16
Recip
es
Quick Recipes
17
Quick Recipes
18
Ac
tiv
ity
Quick Exercises
www.draxe.com
19
Quick Exercises
10 Minute Home Workouts
20
Diab
etes
The condition in which the body does not properly process food for
use as energy. Most of the food we eat is turned into glucose or sugar,
for our bodies to use for energy. (Center For Disease Control)
Diabetes
Facts About Diabetes: • The pancreas, an organ that lies near the stomach, makes a
hormone called insulin to help glucose get into the cells of our bodies.
• When you have diabetes, your body either doesn't make enough insulin or can't use its own insulin as well as it should.
• This causes sugars to build up in your blood. This is why many people refer to diabetes as “sugar.”
• Diabetes can cause serious health complications including heart disease, blindness, kidney failure, and lower-extremity amputations.
• Diabetes is the seventh leading cause of death in the United States.
How prevalent is diabetes among Black People?
• Blacks are 1.7 times as likely to develop diabetes as whites
• The prevalence of diabetes among blacks has quadrupled during the past 30 years
• Among black people age 20 and older, about 2.3 million have diabetes – 10.8% of that age group
• Black people with diabetes are more likely than non-Hispanic whites to develop diabetes and to experience greater disability from diabetes-related complications such as amputations, adult blindness, kidney failure, and increased risk of heart disease and stroke;
• Death rates for blacks with diabetes are 27% higher than for whites.
21
Diabetes
22
Diabetes
23
Diabetes
What are the symptoms of diabetes?
People who think they might have diabetes must visit a physician for
diagnosis. They might have SOME or NONE of the following symptoms:
• Frequent urination
• Excessive thirst
• Unexplained weight loss
• Extreme hunger
• Sudden vision changes
• Tingling or numbness in hands or feet
• Feeling very tired much of the time
• Very dry skin
• Sores that heal slowly
24
Blood Pressure B
lo
od
Pressu
re
25
Blood Pressure
Blood Pressure & Sodium (Salt)
The American Heart Association recommends no more than 2,300 milligrams
(mgs) a day and an ideal limit of no more than 1,500 mg per day for most adults,
especially for those with high blood pressure. Even cutting back by 1,000 mg a
day can improve blood pressure and heart health.
26
So
diu
m
Cutting Back on Sodium
27
Cutting Back on Sodium
28
Th
yro
id
Thyroid The thyroid is a butterfly-shaped gland in the neck, just above the collarbone.
It is one of the endocrine glands, which make hormones. Thyroid hormones
control the rate of many activities in the body. These include how fast calories
are burned and how fast the heart beats. All of these activities are the body's
metabolism.
Hypothyroidism—Underactive thyroid gland. Hypothyroidism
means that the thyroid gland can’t make enough thyroid hormone
to keep the body running normally.
(National Institute of Health)
Thyroid problems include:
Thyroiditis - caused by an attack on the thyroid, causing
inflammation and damage to the thyroid cells.
• Nervousness
• Irritability
• Increased sweating
• Heart racing
• Hand tremors
Hyperthyroidism - any condition in which there is too much
thyroid hormone produced in the body.
• Feeling colder
• Tire more easily
• Skin is getting drier
• Anxiety
• Difficulty sleeping
• Thinning of your skin
• Fine brittle hair and weakness
in your muscles—especially in
the upper arms and thighs
• You’re becoming forget-
ful and depressed
• You’ve started getting
constipated
29
Thyroid
30
How To Quit Smoking S
mo
kin
g
Quitlines
For support in quitting call:
1-800-QUIT-NOW (1-800-784-8669) - 1-855-DÉJELO-YA (1-855-335-3569)
(Center For Disease Control and Prevention)
31
How To Quit Smoking
32
How To Quit Smoking
33
How To Quit Smoking
34
Mental Health Triage Tool
35
36
When to go to the Emergency Room
37
38
Notes
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
39
Notes
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
_______________________________
40
Erie Niagara
Area Health Education Center
77 Goodell St.
Suite 460
Buffalo, NY 14203
716-835-9358
www.erieniagaraahec.org