The purpose of the study was to develop an eating habit checklist for screening elementary school children at risk of inadequate micronutrient intake. Eating habits, food intake, and anthropometric data were collected from 142 children (80 boys and 62 girls) in the 4th to 6th grades of elementary schools. Percentage of Recommended Intakes (RI) and Mean Adequacy Ratio (MAR) of six micronutrients; vitamin A, riboflavin, vitamin C, calcium, iron, zinc, and the number of nutrients the children consumed below EAR among the six nutrients were used as indices to detect the risk of inadequate micronutrient intake. Pearson correlation coefficients were calculated between eating habit scores andinadequate micronutrient intake indices in order to select questions included in the checklist. Meal frequency, enough time for breakfast, regularity of dinner, appetite, eating frequencies of Kimchi, milk, fruits and beans showed significant correlations with indices of inadequate micronutrient intake. Stepwise regression analysis was performed to give each item a different weight by prediction strength. To determine the cut-off point of the test score, sensitivity, specificity, and positive predictive values were calculated. The 8-item checklist with test results from 0 to 12 points was developed, and those with equal or higher than 6 points were diagnosed as high-risk group of inadequate micronutrient intake, and those with 4 or 5 points were diagnosed as moderate-risk group. Among our subjects 14.1% was diagnosed as high-risk group, and 30.3% as moderate-risk group. The proportions of the subjects who consumed below EAR of all micronutrients but vitamin C were highest in the high-risk group, and there were significant differences in the proportions of the subjects with intake below EAR of all micronutrients except vitamin B6 among the three groups. This checklist will provide a useful screening tool to identify children at risk of inadequate micronutrient intake.
Appetite ; Ascorbic Acid ; Breakfast ; Calcium ; Checklist ; Child ; Ear ; Eating ; Fabaceae ; Food Habits ; Fruit ; Humans ; Iron ; Mass Screening ; Meals ; Micronutrients ; Milk ; Riboflavin ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Vitamin A ; Vitamin B 6 ; Zinc

The purpose of the study was to develop an eating habit checklist for screening elementary school children at high risk of energy overintake. Dietary habits, food intake, anthropometric data were collected from 142 children (80 boys and 62 girls) in the 4th to 6th grades of elementary schools. Energy intake, fat intake, and percentage of Estimated Energy Requirement (%EER) were used as indices to detect the risk of energy overintake of the children. Pearson correlation coefficients were calculated between dietary habit scores and energy overintake indices in order to select questions included in the checklist. TV watching during the meal, meal speed, meal amount, overintake frequency, eatingout frequency, snack frequency, frequency of eating Ramyun or fast foods showed significant correlations with energy overintake indices. Stepwise regression analysis was performed to give each item a different weight by prediction strength. To determine the cut-off point of the test score, sensitivity, specificity, and positive predictive values were calculated. The 7-item checklist with test results from 0 to 13 points was developed, and those with equal or higher than 5 points were diagnosed as a risk group of energy overintake. Among our subjects 13.4% was diagnosed as the risk group. Mean energy intake of the subjects in the risk group and the normal group were 2,650 kcal and 1,640 kcal, respectively. However, there were no significant differences of Index of Nutritional Quality (INQ) of the other nutrients except eating fiber between the risk group and the normal group. This checklist will provide a useful screening tool to identify children at high risk of energy overintake.
Checklist ; Child ; Eating ; Energy Intake ; Fast Foods ; Food Habits ; Humans ; Mass Screening ; Meals ; Nutritive Value ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Snacks

A reliable nutrient database is a prerequisite for accurate calculation of dietary intakes. The folate database currently available in Korea, however, is not reliable because the values were obtained from published data in other countries using ineffective methods to extract folates from the food matrix. The purpose of this study was to complement the folate database by analyzing folate content in foods using a more effective method to extract food folates (trienzyme treatment). Folate content per unit weight was highest in laver, fermented soybeans, soybean, spinach, black soybeans, crown daisy, mung beans, and quail's egg in descending order. Legumes, leafy greens, eggs, and seaweeds were rich in folate, and meats, chicken, fish, and some fruits contained less folate. Some of the analyzed values were 10 times higher than those in the currently available database. Folate values of 423 foodcodes out of 2,932 foodcodes (14.4%) in the database in the 7th revision in the Recommended Dietary Allowances for Koreans can be replaced by those analyzed in this study. Since folate values of rice and Kimchi, which are core dishes of Koreans, in the newly established database are higher than those in the current database, folate intake assessed using our data will be higher than that using the current available database. Folate content in more foods commonly consumed in Korea are needed to update the folate database. Meanwhile, folate values presented here can be used to assess dietary folate intake of the Korean population.
Chickens ; Complement System Proteins ; Crowns ; Eggs ; Fabaceae ; Folic Acid* ; Fruit ; Korea* ; Meat ; Ovum ; Recommended Dietary Allowances ; Soybeans ; Spinacia oleracea

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to estimate dietary folate intake and food sources of children and adolescents using a nutrient database revised based on measured folate in selected foods. METHODS: Folate content in 51 foods known as folate sources was measured by microbiological assay after trienzyme extraction. Folate intake was estimated from a part of the data of 'Dietary Intake Survey of Infants, Children and Adolescents in 2007~2008' conducted by the Korea Food and Drug Administration (KFDA) and the Korea Health Industry Development Institute (KHIDI). The study subjects were 567 children aged 1~19 years living in the Chungcheong area who completed two 24-hour recalls. RESULTS: Folate values were revised by replacing the values in the current database with the analyzed values except when the value in the current database was between the analytical values or was not different from the mean analytical value by more than 10%. Among the revised values of 40 food items, folate values of 36 foods were lower than the current values. Mean folate intakes estimated with the revised database were approximately 70~80% lower than those estimated with the current database. Mean folate intakes of males aged 12~14 and females aged 12~19 were lower than the 2010 Recommended Nutrient Intakes (RNIs). Chicken's eggs, Kimchi, rice, mandarin, and laver were found to be main food sources of folate. CONCLUSION: In this study, mean dietary folate intakes were lower than those estimated with the current database. Further analyses for folate content especially in cooked foods commonly consumed in Korea are needed using a reliable assay in order to accurately assess folate intake of the Korean population. In addition, nutrition education should be provided for adolescent females in order to increase consumption of folate-rich foods.
Adolescent* ; Child* ; Education ; Eggs ; Female ; Folic Acid* ; Humans ; Infant ; Korea ; Male ; Ovum ; United States Food and Drug Administration

PURPOSE: The purposes of this study were to describe changes in weight, waist circumference (WC), and prevalence of obesity over 8 years as well as investigate demographic and dietary factors associated with weight gain in Korean adults. METHODS: The Korean Genome and Epidemiology Study is an ongoing community-based longitudinal study, which was started in 2001~2002 and repeated every 2 years. Height, weight, and WC were measured, and demographic data and food intake information using the food frequency questionnaire were collected from 10,038 adults aged 40~69 years at baseline. Among those individuals, 3,506 healthy individuals without chronic diseases completed the 4th follow-up survey in 2009~2010. RESULTS: Mean weight decreased by 0.35 kg and 0.65 kg in men and women, respectively, whereas mean WC increased by 1.71 cm and 1.85 cm during the 8-year period. Prevalence of obesity based on body mass index (BMI) decreased from 34.5% to 33.5% in men and from 38.0% to 36.7% in women, whereas abdominal obesity increased from 14.8% to 22.2% in men and from 28.8% to 35.4% in women. Weight change was associated with age and smoking status in men, and residence area, age, education, income, and alcohol drinking in women. Approximately 57.5% maintained their BMI over 8 years (<±1 kg/m², stable weight group), 19.5% showed a BMI increase of ≥ 1 kg/m² (weight gain group), and 23.0% showed a BMI decrease of more than 1 kg/m² (weight loss group). There was no significant difference in energy intake calculated as the percentage of estimated energy requirements among the three weight change groups. Intakes of coffee mix and milk were significantly higher in the weight gain group than in the weight loss group in men after controlling for confounding factors. CONCLUSION: Our results show that higher consumption of coffee mix and milk was associated with weight gain in Korean healthy men.
Adult* ; Alcohol Drinking ; Body Mass Index ; Chronic Disease ; Coffee ; Eating ; Education ; Energy Intake ; Epidemiology* ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Genome* ; Humans ; Longitudinal Studies ; Male ; Milk ; Obesity* ; Obesity, Abdominal ; Prevalence* ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Waist Circumference* ; Weight Gain* ; Weight Loss

This study was designed to compare general characteristics and dietary habits between volunteers for a nutrition survey and non-volunteers using a questionnaire. Volunteers were recruited by advertising on the homepage of a university to assess nutritional status by examining dietary intake for three days and blood analysis. Non-volunteers were selected from some classes not related to nutrition. There were no significant differences in sex, monthly allowances, eating-out cost, drinking and exercise between the two groups, while the proportion of self-boarding was higher in the volunteer group than in the non-volunteer group, and smoking rate of volunteers was approximately 2.4 times lower than that of non-volunteers. Volunteers were less concerned about their diet than non-volunteers. No significant differences in concern about health, considering factors in their diet, self-evaluation of their diet, learning experience about nutrition, and vitamin/mineral supplement use were observed. The frequency and the place of eating-out for dinner were significantly different between the two groups. More proportions of volunteers tended to eat regularly and eat breakfast. Volunteers consumed seaweeds more frequently, and milk, fruits and fast foods less frequently than nonvolunteers. Our results indicate that some characteristics and dietary habits of volunteers are different from those of non-volunteers. However, we could not show that volunteers were more interested in their diet and had desirable dietary habits than non-volunteers. Further research on the characteristics of volunteers who participate in nutrition survey may be helpful to interpret and generalize the survey results.
Breakfast ; Diagnostic Self Evaluation ; Diet ; Drinking ; Fast Foods ; Food Habits* ; Fruit ; Learning ; Meals ; Milk ; Nutrition Surveys* ; Nutritional Status ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Volunteers*

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of the study was to develop a series of education materials as a card news format to provide nutrition information for pregnant and lactating women. METHODS: The materials were developed in seven steps. As a first step, the needs of pregnant and lactating women were assessed by reviewing scientific papers and existing education materials, and by interviewing a focus group. The second step was to construct main categories and the topics of information. In step 3, a draft of the contents in each topic was developed based on the scientific evidence. In step 4, a draft of card news was created by editors and designers by editing the text and embedding images in the card news. In step 5, the text, images and sequences were reviewed to improve readability by the members of the project team and nutrition experts. In step 6, parts of the text or images or the sequences of the card news were revised based on the reviews. In step 7, the card news were finalized and released online to the public. RESULTS: A series of 26 card news for pregnant and lactating women were developed. The series covered five categories such as nutrition management, healthy food choices, food safety, favorites to avoid, nutrition management in special conditions for pregnant and lactating women. The satisfaction of 7 topics of the card news was evaluated by 140 pregnant women, and more than 70% of the women were satisfied with the materials. CONCLUSIONS: The card news format materials developed in this study are innovative nutrition education tools, and can be downloaded on the homepage of the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. Those materials can be easily shared in social media by nutrition educators or by pregnant and lactating women to use.
Comprehension ; Education* ; Female ; Focus Groups ; Food Safety ; Humans ; Pregnant Women ; Social Media

A trienzyme extraction method (use of alpha-amylase, protease and folate conjugase) for food folate assay has been used to release folate from the food matrix. In order to reduce the incubation time with three enzymes, folate values were compared between two incubation protocols; separate incubation (SI, incubated with alpha-amylase and conjugase separately for 2 hours after protease treatment) and combined incubation (CI, incubated with alpha-amylase and conjugase together for 2 hours after protease treatment) using 88 food items from 12 kinds of fast foods and processed foods. We found that folate values by CI were comparable to or higher than those by SI, indicating that CI might be a better extraction procedure to shorten the entire incubation time. We measured folate contents in 49 fast foods and 26 processed foods by microbiological assay after CI. Mean folate contents of one serving of various burgers ranged from 43.1 to 62.0 microgram. One serving of French fries, pizza, sandwich and triangled kimbab contained a mean of 53.3, 28.4, 47.4, and 25.7 microgram of folate, respectively. Folate contents of non-alcoholic beverages were very low, ranging from 1.0 to 5.2 microgram/100 g. Some of our values were comparable to the values in the folate database published in Korean Nutrition Society, however, some of the published values were 140 times higher than the measured values in this study. Folate values measured by the more recent modifications here can be used to update Korean folate database to accurately estimate dietary folate intake
alpha-Amylases ; Beverages ; Fast Foods ; Folic Acid ; gamma-Glutamyl Hydrolase

Food intake patterns and iron nutritional status of male and female college students were studied based on dietary iron density. Dietary data were collected using the method of 24-hour recalls for 3 consecutive days from 106 students, and fasting blood were drawn to measure iron nutritional status indicators such as total iron binding capacity, serum iron, hematocrit, hemoglobin, and red blood cell count. Mean daily iron intakes of male and female students were 13.3mg and 10.0mg, which were 107% and 63% of the RDA, respectively. However, dietary iron density were similar between male and female students as 5.9mg/1,000kcal and 5.7mg/1,000kcal, respectively. The diets were divided into two groups according to iron density; high iron density group (6mg/1,000kcal or more) and low iron density group (less than 6mg/1,000kcal). The students in high density group had lower intakes of energy, especially fat, than those in low density group. Female students in high density group showed significantly higher intakes of iron, and non-heme iron and folate than those of low density group. The students in high density group consumed more rice, hamburger, and eggs, while those in low density group consumed more Ra-myon and alcoholic beverages. The students in high density group consumed greater proportions of iron from plant-origin foods. Vegetables, legumes and seasonings were the food groups that female students in high density group consumed significantly more than those in low density group. Also the percentages of female students with iron deficiency were higher in low density group. These results suggest that diet with high iron density is important to improve iron nutritional status of women, and further research about the effective way to increase iron density in our diet is needed.
Alcoholic Beverages ; Diet ; Eating* ; Eggs ; Erythrocyte Count ; Fabaceae ; Fasting ; Female ; Folic Acid ; Hematocrit ; Humans ; Iron* ; Iron, Dietary* ; Male ; Nutritional Status* ; Ovum ; Seasons ; Vegetables

The purpose of the study was to examine the changes of food and nutrient intakes of college students between 1999 and 2009. Dietary survey of 169 college students was conducted by a 24-hour recall method for three days in 2009. Food and nutrient intakes in 2009 were compared with the data from 106 students collected by the same methods in 1999. The intakes of cereals & grain products and vegetables in 2009 were lower than those of 1999, but the intakes of meats, eggs, milk & milk products, and manufactured food were higher. The intake of rice per person decreased greatly from 452.2 g in 1999 to 351.4 g in 2009 in males, and from 306.9 g to 237.2 g in females. While the intakes of protein, fat, thiamin, niacin, vitamin B6, phosphorus, potassium, zinc, and cholesterol were significantly higher, the intakes of dietary fiber were significantly lower in 2009 compared to 1999 both in males and females. The nutrients consumed less than the Recommended Intakes were vitamin A, riboflavin, vitamin C, and calcium in males and additionally folate, iron, and zinc in females in both 1999 and 2009. The ratio of carbohydrate, protein and fat as energy was 61 : 15 : 24 and 60 : 14 : 26 in 1999, and 54 : 16 : 30 and 56 : 15 : 29 in 2009 in males and females respectively, showing that carbohydrate intake decreased and fat intake increased greatly. Our data suggest that nutrition education is necessary for college students to help them consume more vegetables and fruits and less fat and cholesterol.
Ascorbic Acid ; Calcium ; Edible Grain ; Cholesterol ; Dietary Fiber ; Eating ; Eggs ; Female ; Folic Acid ; Fruit ; Humans ; Iron ; Male ; Meat ; Milk ; Niacin ; Ovum ; Phosphorus ; Potassium ; Riboflavin ; Vegetables ; Vitamin A ; Vitamin B 6 ; Zinc