Abstract Enhancing the health literacy of the entire population is a prerequisite for improving the health of the entire population, and since the health attitudes and behaviors formed during childhood and adolescence have a profound impact on the health patterns of adulthood, the enhancement of health literacy of children and adolescents is of particular importance. As the main place for children and adolescents to receive education, schools should better fulfil the function of education and promotion of health literacy. China has been carrying out the pilot and promotion of health promoting schools (HPS) since 1995, and is currently in the stage of comprehensive improvement of HPS construction. This paper introduces the background and characteristics of Health-Literate Schools (HeLit-Schools) in foreign countries and compares them with HPS in China, drawing on the advantages of HeLit-Schools to provide a new idea and a new way of thinking for the construction of HPS in China and for the practice of the "Healthy China Initiative".

Abstract Health literate schools (HeLit-Schools) play a significant role in fostering students health literacy. The paper elucidates the background and conceptual connotations of HeLit-Schools, and analyzes how HeLit-Schools effectively integrate and enhance the health literacy of schools in three aspects: philosophy and core drivers, strategy and method implementation, as well as evaluation mechanisms and standard setting. Furthermore, the paper explores the implications of foreign HeLit-Schools research and practice for China under the context of "Healthy China" construction, as well as the key strategies for Chinese schools in the implementation of HeLit-Schools, aiming to provide a new perspective and theoretical support for Chinese schools to practice the "Healthy China initiative" and strengthen school construction from the perspective of health literacy.