Objectives: To investigate the relationships between comprehensive health literacy and health-related quality of life (QOL) among community-dwelling elderly.
Methods: In this cross-sectional study, community-dwelling elderly persons (n＝330) aged >65 years were enrolled. The 14-item Health Literacy Scale (HLS-14) measured health literacy and yielded total, functional, interactive, and critical health literacy scores. The 12-item Short Form Health Survey measured health-related QOL and comprised the Physical Component Summary (PCS) and the Mental Component Summary (MCS). In the univariate analysis, the relationships were investigated between PCS or MCS and total health literacy or each subdomain of the HLS-14 by using Spearman's rank correlation coefficient. In the multiple regression analysis, models were constructed with either PCS or MCS as the dependent variable, total health literacy or each subdomain thereof as the independent variable, and input covariates.
Results: In the univariate analysis, the following relationships were detected: 1) PCS and functional health literacy (r_s＝0.21, p < 0.01), 2) MCS and total health literacy (r_s＝0.14, p＝0.01), 3) MCS and functional health literacy (r_s＝0.22, p < 0.01), 4) MCS and interactive health literacy (r_s＝0.14, p＝0.01). Multiple regression analysis showed the following significant and independent relationships between 1) PCS and functional health literacy (β＝0.20, p < 0.01), and 2) MCS and functional health literacy (β＝0.13, p＝0.02).
Conclusion: In this study, functional health literacy and health-related QOL showed independent relationships. To improve health-related QOL, it is important to devise ways to improve health information to the elderly.

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Objective: This study was conducted to examine what factors were behind their lunchtime instructions for home room teachers (hereafter called as teachers), and to identify the characteristics of teachers consulting with nutrition teachers and school dietitians.
Methods: In this cross-sectional study, a self-completed questionnaire was sent to 569 teachers at 32 municipal elementary schools through the school board of one city (Saitama prefecture) in July, 2014. The questionnaire items dealt with factors behind the lunchtime, approaches by teachers at lunchtime, time spent eating school lunch, food wasted in a class, and demographic characteristics.
Results: Data from 456 teachers (143 men, 31.4%) were analyzed. The mean years (standard deviation) of experience of teaching was 13.5 (12.5) years. The greatest factors behind lunchtime instructions were “education teachers received at home” (272 teachers, 59.6%), “education teachers received at school” (208 teachers, 45.6%), and “consultations with nutrition teachers and school dietitians” (172 teachers, 37.7%). Furthermore, women were the majority of those who consulted nutrition teachers and school dietitians. Other characteristics of participants who selected this factor were the following: they had experience in allocating duties related to school lunch, worked at the school making lunch in their schools, and were actively involved in instructing students during lunch.
Conclusion: Many teachers conducted lunchtime instructions referring their experiences at school and home. About 40% of the teachers were consulting with nutrition teachers and school dietitians and had various opportunities to be involved with nutrition teachers and school dietitians.

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Objectives: The Food Bank Child Support Project aims to use food support to prevent skipping of meals and lighten the burden of household food expenses during the summer vacation in low-income households with children. Here, we attempted to use the project to understand the basic needs of these households.
Project description: The project was conducted in August 2015 by the non-profit organization, Food Bank Yamanashi, as a food safety net project. Food Bank Yamanashi provided 11 kg/time of food including rice, and 5 times during the project to 127 households with children who hoped to receive food support. Most households were introduced by local government and schools. To evaluate the project, questionnaires were sent to the 104 households who had begun food support newly from August 2015.
Evaluations: Responses were received from 61 households. Frequency of eating 3 times a day and frequency of consumption of rice, noodles, meat/fish, eggs, vegetables, and milk/dairy products were high after implementation. Food expenses for rice/bread/noodles decreased. Households' important basic needs were diet/nutrition, household budget, and health/medicine. However, recognition of the degree of public assistance, such as schooling support, was low.
Challenges: Food support for low-income households with children during the summer vacation might be beneficial for the child's diet and family budget. Collaboration among non-profit organizations, local governments, and schools is beneficial to reach households in need of support. A future challenge is to scale up the project and implement it in other regions.

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Purpose: This special article summarized the symposium titled “Capacity building for health promotion: how to develop advocacy skills.” It was held by the 75th conference of Japanese Society of Public Health and co-hosted by the Japanese Society of Health Promotion and Education in Osaka on October 26, 2016.
Contents: Professor Jimba, the University of Tokyo, introduced a concept of advocacy and stated its importance for the capacity building in public health. Dr. Haruyama, Associate Professor of Dokkyo Medical University, suggested that support is necessary from academic organizations to develop advocacy skills among health professionals and researchers. Dr Nakamura, Japan Association for Development of Community Medicine, proposed a human resource development scheme through policy research in national institutes and government. Dr. Moriyama, State Minister of Justice, emphasized that academic organizations propose policy recommendations to influence administrative and legislative body of the government.
Conclusion: The academic organizations, such as Japanese Society of Public Health and the Japanese Society of Health Promotion and Education, should strengthen training for advocacy skills among researchers, professionals and practitioners in public health.

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