{
  "abstract": "Objectives To examine the correlation between health literacy (HL) and susceptibility to food-related fake news, and to explore the role of social media and influencers in shaping consumers’ food choices.Design Cross-sectional survey conducted via an online questionnaire.Setting Nine community pharmacies located in northern, central and southern Italy.Participants A total of 2284 consumers recruited between January and March 2024.Results Lower HL levels were significantly associated with poorer self-reported education, health and economic status, as well as precarious employment. These same variables were linked to a higher likelihood of believing and spreading food-related fake news. Individuals from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds were also more likely to trust influencers who influenced their food choices.Conclusions HL plays a key role in reducing the susceptibility to food-related misinformation, particularly in lower socioeconomic groups. Targeted interventions aimed at improving HL may help mitigate the spread of fake news and empower individuals to make healthier food choices.",
  "authors": [
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "University of Salento, Lecce, Italy"
      ],
      "name": "Valeria Gabellone"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "University of Salento, Lecce, Italy"
      ],
      "name": "Fabiana Nuccetelli"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "University of Florence, Florence, Italy"
      ],
      "name": "Guglielmo Bonaccorsi"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "University of Foggia, Foggia, Italy"
      ],
      "name": "Francesca Fortunato"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "University of Foggia, Foggia, Italy"
      ],
      "name": "Rosa Prato"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "University of Salento, Lecce, Italy"
      ],
      "name": "Pier Luigi Lopalco"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Exploring the relationship between health literacy and attitude to believe fake news about food: a survey among the Italian population",
  "uid": "aa8ceb39-eca0-52af-b85d-dfb2fa578676"
}