Health “Is Not Rocket Science”: The General, Nutritional, and Oral Health Literacy of Portuguese Adolescents

This exploratory study aimed to measure the level of health literacy in general health, oral health, and nutrition, through the self-perception of young people (adolescents), in the domains of access, understanding, and use of health resources. The study involved 90 young people, aged between 12 and 19 years, living in different cities of Portugal. The questionnaire applied—Q-LIS-SON—integrates three domains of the health literacy (general, oral, and nutritional). The results indicated that females have a more positive self-assessment of their general health literacy. Despite the predominance of positive self-assessments by young people, it is necessary to increase health literacy skills, particularly in nutritional and oral health literacy, adapting strategies according to age and profiles. In Europe there are several imbalances, with Nordic countries such as Denmark having higher values of satisfaction with life, well-being, and literacy, which can determine the level of health literacy of the population. Public policies, health communication, and the development of parenting skills can be some of the paths to improving health literacy in countries such as Portugal that report lower health literacy.