Health education for disease prevention: a review of the literature

Abstract

Currently public policies, government actions and different programs involving Health Education (HE) are carried out in favor of population health. With regard to the theme of HE, this is a multifaceted theme, convergent to various personal conceptions, whether in the area of education or health, which may result in divergent understandings. Due to the complexity of the theme, the problem occurs due to the lack of understanding of what is really population-facing HE, dissolving the importance of HE for preventive measures against different diseases, which generates a high budgetary cost in public health. In view of this context, this article has as its main question: How can health education contribute to the prevention of diseases in the population? The study aimed to present the HE for Disease Prevention (DP), branching out in addressing its concepts, as well as highlighting the legal bases that ensure the HE to the population. To this end, the study was conducted through a literature review by the search sites "Google Scholar", "Scielo" and "PubMed". Through the descriptors: Health Education; Health education as disease prevention; Health Education for the population, where studies were chosen that presented the HE focused on DP. It is concluded that The HE is the education for self-knowledge and reflection on their own health, as well as the full awareness that something goes wrong, attributing the critical reflection of the subject regarding their habits and preventive measures. It is applied through the school curriculum from primary school as well as by government programs in health centers, in order to educate society to raise awareness about preventive measures and promote a better quality of life, thus preventing the spread of diseases.