In an attempt to figure out the relationship between zinc status and taste acuity of old and young women, dietary zinc intake, urinary zinc excretion, and taste acuity were determined for 118 women. Zinc intake was measured by 2-day food records and food frequency method. Urinary zinc excretion was measured from urine samples collected for twenty four hours. Body fat, lean body mass (LBM), and total body water were measured by bio-impedence. Average dietary zinc intake by food record was 4.15+/-1.33mg (=35% if Korean RDA) for the old women and 5.41+/-2.76mg (=25% of RDA) for young women. When zinc intake was measured by a frequency method, the average intakes of the old and young women were 3.5+/-1.7mg 4.5+/-1.9mg, respectively. It appears that dietary zinc intake of young women was significantly higher than that of the old women. Average urinary zinc excretion of the subjects was 0.27+/-0.16mg in the elderly and 0.24+/-0.13mg in young women, which indicated a marginal zinc status. However, zinc status was not significantly different between old and young women. Correlation analysis indicated that zinc intake and urinary zinc excretion were positively related to BMI and LBM in young women. The old women (m=49) showed significantly higher taste detection thresholds than young subjects (n=47) for both sweet and salty tastes. Recognition thresholds for sodium chloride and sucrose were not significantly different between old and young women. The lower the taste thresholds for salty taste, the higher the average dietary zinc intake. However, taste perception concentration was not related to the urinary zinc excretion level.
Adipose Tissue ; Aged ; Body Water ; Female ; Humans ; Sodium Chloride ; Sucrose ; Taste Perception ; Taste Threshold ; Zinc*

In an attempt to figure out the relationship between zinc status and taste acuity of old and young women, dietary zinc intake, urinary zinc excretion, and taste acuity were determined for 118 women. Zinc intake was measured by 2-day food records and food frequency method. Urinary zinc excretion was measured from urine samples collected for twenty four hours. Body fat, lean body mass (LBM), and total body water were measured by bio-impedence. Average dietary zinc intake by food record was 4.15+/-1.33mg (=35% if Korean RDA) for the old women and 5.41+/-2.76mg (=25% of RDA) for young women. When zinc intake was measured by a frequency method, the average intakes of the old and young women were 3.5+/-1.7mg 4.5+/-1.9mg, respectively. It appears that dietary zinc intake of young women was significantly higher than that of the old women. Average urinary zinc excretion of the subjects was 0.27+/-0.16mg in the elderly and 0.24+/-0.13mg in young women, which indicated a marginal zinc status. However, zinc status was not significantly different between old and young women. Correlation analysis indicated that zinc intake and urinary zinc excretion were positively related to BMI and LBM in young women. The old women (m=49) showed significantly higher taste detection thresholds than young subjects (n=47) for both sweet and salty tastes. Recognition thresholds for sodium chloride and sucrose were not significantly different between old and young women. The lower the taste thresholds for salty taste, the higher the average dietary zinc intake. However, taste perception concentration was not related to the urinary zinc excretion level.
Adipose Tissue ; Aged ; Body Water ; Female ; Humans ; Sodium Chloride ; Sucrose ; Taste Perception ; Taste Threshold ; Zinc*

The purpose of this study was to investigate the dietary behavior of people with type 2 diabetes mellitus and to improve their quality of life through medical nutrition therapy. The subjects were 38 persons with type 2 diabetes mellitus visiting a public health center to participate in a dietary education program from Jun, 2003 to Nov. 2003 in Daegu, Korea. The interviews were tape-recorded and analyzed attitude, knowledge, and awareness of patients by focus group interview. Most of the patients were mainly dependent on drug therapy and had little experience of diet education. Barriers to dietary practice adherences were limitations in food selection, lack of will and feel of burden. Barriers to follow guidelines were lack of self-control, confliction with food habits of their family, accessibility, economical problems, fear for the change after dietary practice, food difficulties in meal distribution and difficulties for eating out. After 4 weeks of intensive nutrition education, fasting blood sugar levels were decreased and postprandial and waist circumference were significantly decreased in all patients and 26.9% of patients were under decreased oral hypoglycemic agent dosage due to improved blood sugar level. dietary knowledge of subjects were greatly improved in such items as dietary intake, saturated fat, HbA1C, ideal body weight, and waist circumference.
Blood Glucose ; Daegu ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 ; Diet ; Drug Therapy ; Eating ; Education ; Fasting ; Focus Groups ; Food Habits ; Food Preferences ; Humans ; Ideal Body Weight ; Korea ; Meals ; Nutrition Therapy ; Public Health* ; Quality of Life ; Waist Circumference

No abstract available.
Cytogenetics*

Literature suggests that iron deficiency anemia is prevalent among pregnant women all over the world. This study was designed to evaluate the iron status of pregnant women during the fist five months, with the intention of determining ways to reduce the prevalence of iron deficiency anemia among pregnant women in Korea. We collected dietary information and measured the biochemical status of iron in 171 pregnant women over 16 weeks of gestation (= 16.7 +/- 2.34 week). Dietary intakes for 3 days were collected using the 24 hour recall and food record methods. The daily Fe intake was measured using the food frequency method. The Body Mass Index (BMI), calculated by using the pre-pregnancy weight and height, indicated that 31.3% of subjects were under-weight. We divided the subjects into normal and anemic group by using the serum ferritin levels. It appeared that the mean dietary intake of iron was 52.3% of the recommended level for pregnant women. The dietary quality evaluation showed that pregnant women ate only 58% of the recommended amount in the food groups of meat, fish, eggs, beans and milk and dairy products. The hematological indices showed that the mean Hemoglobin (Hb) was 11.9 g/dl, Hematocrit (Hct) was 35.1%, ferritin was 23.9 ng/ml, and transferrin was 297.3 microgram/dl. The dietary intake of iron was significantly lower and the vitamin C intake was significantly higher in the anemic group. The pre-pregnancy BMI was significantly lower in the anemic group. Variables affecting iron intake were the Fe intake frequency index and the food group score. The Fe index showed significantly positive correlation with the pre-pregnancy food intake and the food group score. Hb showed a significantly positive correlation with the prepregnancy food intake. We concluded that strategies to improve iron status be implemented in the pre-pregnant stage so as to reduce the prevalence of iron deficiency and that we should stress on the importance of an adequate diet as well as the maintenance of a heathy weight.
Anemia, Iron-Deficiency ; Ascorbic Acid ; Body Mass Index ; Dairy Products ; Diet* ; Eating ; Eggs ; Fabaceae ; Female ; Ferritins ; Hematocrit ; Humans ; Intention ; Iron* ; Korea ; Meat ; Milk ; Ovum ; Pregnancy* ; Pregnant Women* ; Prevalence ; Transferrin

No abstract available.
Situs Inversus*

OBJECTIVE: The present study was conducted to evaluate the viability of germ cells form the adult and fetal ovarian tissues after vitrification followed by xenografting. METHOD: The human adult ovarian tissues were obtained from 33 years old patients, and the fetal ovarian tissues were obtained from 22 weeks and 25 weeks in gestation. ovarian tissues were cryopreserved by vitrification with 5.5 M ethylene glycol (EG 5.5) and 1.0 M sucrose as cryoprotectants. Adult and fetal ovarian tissues were pre-equilivrated with EG 5.5 at room temperature for 10 and 5 minutes, respectively and plunged into liquid nitrogen immediately. Frozen-thawed tissues were xenografted into NOD-SCID mice to evaluated the viability and capacity for further growth of the primordial follicles. Grafts were recovered from the recipients 4 weeks after transplantation and histological analysis was accomplished. RESULT AND CONCLUSION: Grafts recovered 4 weeks after transplantation contained less number of oocytes and primordial follicles compared to that of the fresh tissues. Survived follicles were mainly primordial and intermediary with larger diameter and more granulosa cells. It is confirmed that 1) the ovarian tissues were healthy and the germ cells were survived after vitrification, and 2) the survived fetal primordial follicles after vitrification resumed the growth in the xenofrafts.
Adult ; Animals* ; Ethylene Glycol ; Female ; Germ Cells ; Granulosa Cells ; Heterografts* ; Humans* ; Mice ; Nitrogen ; Oocytes ; Pregnancy ; Sucrose ; Transplantation, Heterologous* ; Transplants ; Vitrification

This study was intended to examine the zinc status of free-living adult women living in the Taegu region. Zine intake of 102 female subjects was measured by food frequency method for 3 consecutive days. Urinary zine was assessed from urine samples collected fir twenty four hours. Average dietary zinc intake of adult female subjects using food record was 5.9+/-1.8 mg which was 49% of Korean RDA. When zine intake by frequency method was higher than by food record. Average urinary zine intake by frequency method was higher than that by food record. Thus, it appeared that zinc intake by frequency method was higher than that by food record. Average urinary zinc excretion of 102 adult female subjects was 0.28+/-0.16 mg, which belonged to marginal zinc deficiency range. Fifty nine of 102 subjects showed marginal zinc deficiency as assessed by urinary zinc excretion. If we compare the zinc status of adult female subjects by age group, zinc intake in the 50s was significantly higher than any other age groups. However, there were no significant differences in zinc status according to BMI groups and BMI groups. Significant correlations were found between zinc intake and energy, protein, carbohydrate and fat intake. Based on dietary zinc intake and urinary zinc, we concluded that zinc status of adult female living in the Taegu region is marginally deficient.
Adult* ; Daegu* ; Female* ; Humans ; Zinc

Familial benign chronic pemphigua is a rare disease characterized by a localized recurrent eruption of grouped vesicles and exudative lesions involving the neck, groin, axillae and intertriginous areas. There are no systemic manifestations but chronicity and pruritic lesions creates a significant social and psychological handicap to those afflicted. We presented a case of familial benign chronic pemphigus in a 39 years old man He has had recurrent vesicles, fissures and crust formation in inguinal area for 10 years. Light microscopic findings showed suprabasal vesiculation with acantholysis and villi formation. And electron-microscopic findings showed as follows: Bizzare microvilli changes with widened intercellular spaces, followed by loss of desmosome and complete acantholysis. Tonofilament-desmosome complex is disrupted. Many of acantholytic cells are associated with abnormal keratinization which is repreaented by perinuclear thickened bundles of tonofilament arranged in whorls or lumps. Authors diagnosed with clinical symptoms, light and electron-microscopic findings as Hailey-Hailey disease. The lesions were improved by systemic antibiotics and steroid with cold soaking.
Acantholysis ; Adult ; Anti-Bacterial Agents ; Axilla ; Desmosomes ; Extracellular Space ; Groin ; Humans ; Intermediate Filaments ; Microvilli ; Neck ; Pemphigus, Benign Familial* ; Rare Diseases

This study was carried out to determine whether a short-term zinc supplementation could improve the zinc status without adverse changes in copper status among type 2 diabetic patients. Seventy-six diabetic subjects and 72 normal adults participated in this study. Subjects were randomly divided into supplemented and control groups. Forty-four diabetic patients and 34 normal subjects were supplemented with 50 mg zinc gluconate daily for 4 weeks. Dietary intakes of participants were measured for two non-consecutive days by 24-hour recall method. Nutritional status of zinc and copper were also evaluated by biochemical measurement of fasting plasma samples and spot urinary collection. At baseline, diabetic patients showed significantly lower levels of dietary zinc intake and higher urinary zinc excretion than the normal adult group (P < 0.05, P < 0.0001). Plasma level of zinc was not significantly different between diabetic and normal adults at baseline. However, plasma zinc level increased significantly in both diabetic patients and normal adults after zinc supplementation. The changes in plasma copper levels following zinc supplementation were not statistically significant in diabetic subjects as well as in normal adults. These results indicated that four weeks of zinc supplementation did not influence Cu status and that it may contribute to improving the zinc status. Therefore, we suggest that Zn supplementation for a short-term period may improve marginal zinc status of diabetic patients without interfering with their copper status
Adult ; Copper ; Fasting ; Gluconates ; Humans ; Nutritional Status ; Plasma ; Zinc