Bridging the gap: Environmental health literacy as key to adolescent well-being and sustainable behaviors

Adolescents who possess environmental health literacy are more equipped to handle the effects of the environment on their health. This study uses data from Portugal’s 2022 HBSC survey to investigate the environmental health literacy (EHL) of teenagers. The Environmental Health Literacy Scale (EHLS) was verified by confirmatory component analysis. Within the framework of an ecosystem, this study investigates factors related to health and well-being. There are 7355 adolescents in the sample. EHLS_Social Norms and participation in volunteering activities were found to be significant predictors of EHL_Knowledge, which explained 25.2% of the variance in the final model. EHLS_Social Norms and EHLS_Knowledge accounted for 42.9% of the variance in EHL_Behaviors, while school grade was adversely connected with pro-environmental behavior. While actions and knowledge were major positive predictors, gender and school grades showed negative relationships, and EHL_Social Norms accounted for 46% of the variance. This study establishes a valid measure of environmental health literacy in adolescents, informing science education strategies and public health interventions.