Health literacy boosts happiness in older adults: study

(HealthScout) UPDATED 2009-04-28

Older adults who are able to read, understand, and use health and medical information are happier, new research suggests. For the study, investigators asked 383 people ages 50 and older if they could read and answer questions on medical forms without help. The participants also were asked to rate their level of happiness. Researchers found that adults who had the most difficulty reading and understanding medical forms were more than twice as likely to report being unhappy as those who could read and understand the forms without assistance. Experts say the finding may be linked to feelings of being in control, since feeling in control--something that could be undermined by poor health literacy--has been linked to higher levels of happiness. Read full story >

See all Alzheimer's News