The brief intervention is a therapeutic strategy suggested to address behavioral changes associated with risk factors for chronic non-communicable diseases and there is ample evidence of its effectiveness. However, this evidence is sustained by various definitions of “brief intervention”, a fact that makes the clinical application of this strategy difficult. This literature review article aimed to conduct a search for systematic reviews in the Epistemonikos database in order to identify common factors in the definition of “brief intervention” and summarize some brief intervention strategies frequently used in primary health care. It also seeks to describe their effectiveness, for three risk factors: tobacco, alcohol and physical activity, within this clinical context.