Predicting Factors of Nutrition-Label Health Literacy among Junior High School Students in Phetchaburi Province
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Abstract
This cross-sectional descriptive study aimed to examine the relationship and predictive power of nutrition knowledge, family influence, and peer influence on health literacy related to nutrition labels among lower secondary school students in Phetchaburi Province. The sample consisted of 102 students from Grades 7 to 9, selected through multistage random sampling from schools in Phetchaburi Province. Data were collected between August 2021 and June 2022, using a nutrition label knowledge questionnaire with a Kuder-Richardson 20 (KR-20) reliability coefficient of .95, a questionnaire on family and peer influence, and a health literacy scale related to the Guideline Daily Amounts (GDA) nutrition label, with Cronbach’s alpha coefficients of .82 and .85, respectively. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson’s correlation coefficient, and stepwise multiple regression analysis.
The results revealed that nutrition knowledge and the influence of family and peers were positively correlated with students’ health literacy regarding nutrition labels (r = .47, .40; p < .05). These variables together explained 27.6% of the variance in health literacy scores (R²adj = .276, p < .01).
The findings suggest that school health professionals and nurse educators should promote nutrition-related health literacy by integrating teaching strategies that are connected to students’ family and peer contexts. This approach may enhance students’ abilities to access, understand, interpret, and apply nutrition label information effectively in their daily lives.
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