The question of evidence in health promotion

SUMMARY Health promoters require credible evidence to identify relevant determinants of health, choose activities to pro- mote health, and then evaluate the effectiveness of these chosen activities. The issue of evidence in health promotion is a complex one that requires critical examination of what is meant by health promotion, the focus of health pro- motion activities, and the ideological issues and principles that inform health promotion practice. It is argued that health promoters should be explicit about the principles and values behind their health promotion activities, and consider how ideology, values, principles and data interact to produce evidence. Resources that will provide assistance in these tasks are provided.