OBJECTIVES: Although the number of laboratory workers is constantly increasing every year, few studies have been conducted on the health and nutritional status of these research workers. This study determined the health status of laboratory workers by analyzing their anthropometric indices, dietary life, vitamin D status and blood clinical indices. METHODS: The subjects consisted of 100 female laboratory workers. This study investigated their diet, anthropometric indices, vitamin D status and blood clinical indices. The subjects were divided into two groups according to their duration of working in a laboratory (<1 year,≥1 year). RESULTS: The average age and body mass index (BMI) of subjects were 23.18 years and 21.51 kg/m2, respectively Those subjects with over 1 year employment (≥1 year) had a significantly higher waist-hip ratio than that of the subjects with the less than 1 year employment (<1 year). The mean serum vitamin D level of all the subjects was 10.04 ng/mL, which is close to a level of vitamin D deficiency. There was a significantly higher average intake of calories in the over 1 year employment group as compared to that of the less than 1 year employment group. The frequency of eating sweet snacks was significantly higher for the over 1 year employment group. The correlation analysis showed a significant positive correlation between the serum 25-(OH)-vitamin D level and the time of exposure to sunlight, while dietary intake of vitamin D did not show correlation with the serum 25-(OH)-vitamin D level. However, the serum 25-(OH)-vitamin D level was also negatively correlated with both the percentage of body fat and visceral fat. CONCLUSIONS: Laboratory workers are a very high risk group in terms of their nutritional status of vitamin D. Therefore, they need greater time of exposure to sunlight as well as increasing their dietary consumption of vitamin D. In addition, it is important for laboratory worker to practice regular and balanced dietary habits in order to maintain a healthy life.
Adipose Tissue ; Body Mass Index ; Diet ; Eating ; Employment ; Female ; Food Habits ; Humans ; Intra-Abdominal Fat ; Nutritional Status ; Snacks ; Sunlight ; Vitamin D Deficiency ; Vitamin D ; Vitamins ; Waist-Hip Ratio

The purpose of this study was to compare the usage of beef and foodservice managers' perceptions of beef quality by foodservice type. A survey was conducted on 546 dietitians, and 499 acceptable responses were used for data analysis. By weight, pork was the most used meat in foodservice institutions, followed by poultry and beef. More than half of the foodservices selected meat suppliers by competitive bidding. Approximately 85.8% of the respondents used Hanwoo beef, followed by Australian beef and Youku beef. Beef type differed significantly by foodservice type (P<0.001): most of the schools and social welfare facilities used Hanwoo beef, whereas most hospitals and business/industry operations used Australian beef. When purchasing beef, safety of beef was rated the most important, while eco-friendliness was rated the least important. Most of the dietitians understood that marbling is one of the determinants of the beef quality, but were not aware of other components. Dietitians that selected Hanwoo and Youku beef were more satisfied with quality, taste, nutrition, freshness, country of origin, package, customer, preference, and availability for various menus than those who used imported beef. Dietitians who used Hanwoo beef were the most satisfied with country of origin, whereas the others were the most satisfied with safety. Since the dietitians are in charge of planning menus and selecting meat suppliers at foodservice institutions, they should make knowledgeable decisions by understanding meat supply systems and quality of beef.
Competitive Bidding ; Humans ; Meat ; Nutritionists ; Poultry ; Red Meat* ; Social Welfare ; Statistics as Topic ; Surveys and Questionnaires

A survey was conducted to determine the perception of youku meat among college students majoring in food and/or nutrition. The survey participants were located nationwide, and the responses from the 2,454 students were analyzed. More male and higher grade students answered that they had heard about youku while only 20.0% had learned about Youku from class. Approximately 37.8% of the subjects recognized youku as 'dairy cattle which are too old to produce milk', 54.0% as 'all cattle grown for the purpose of meat', and 23.1% as 'all cattle except for Hanwoo'. Only 37.4% recognized youku correctly. Compared with the same quality grade, 25.3% recognized youku meat as being cheaper than imported beef, and only 25.6% of them recognized that youku meat has less fat than imported beef. As much as 83.3% of subjects did not know whether or not they were served youku meat, and 23.7% of subjects wanted increased availability of youku meat. As much as 22.9% of subjects opposed the increased use of youku meat, and the reasons were "it does not taste good" (18.1%), "it is not Hanwoo" (15.1%), "it is not sanitary" (13.1%), and "it is imported" (6.0%). The findings provide basic information on barriers regarding youku meat promotion among subjects who will be dieticians in food service or managers in purchase departments of catering companies in the future.
Animals ; Cattle ; Food Services ; Humans ; Male ; Meat* ; Nutritionists

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to examine mothers' eating behavior and salty taste and its relationship to their preschool children's eating behaviors. METHODS: This survey was conducted by self-report after getting permission from sixty one mothers who had preschool children. The questionnaire was focused on mothers' salty test and salt-related eating behavior of both mothers and their preschool children. RESULTS: Comparison of eating behavior score between mother and their preschoolers showed that mothers' score was lower than their preschoolers' one. Salty foods with high preference and intake frequency by mothers and preschoolers were 'salted dry fish, stock fish' and 'soup, stew, noodle soup'. In addition, there were strong positive correlations between preference and intake frequency on most of the salty food items. Intake of Ramen soup was significantly different (p < 0.001) between the two groups. Preschoolers ate less ramen soup compared to their mothers. CONCLUSIONS: Overall results showed that preschoolers' dietary behavior was better than the mothers' one. However, preschoolers' dietary behavior was significantly influenced by their mothers. Therefore, mothers should have an appropriate eating behavior in order to have a positive influence on their children's eating habits. In addition, the results suggested that proper nutrition education is needed for mothers of preschool children.
Child, Preschool* ; Eating ; Education ; Feeding Behavior* ; Humans ; Mothers ; Parents* ; Surveys and Questionnaires

Polymyalgia rheumatica is an inflammatory disease affecting elderly and involving the shoulder and pelvic girdles. No epidemiological study of polymyalgia rheumatica was conducted in Korea. We retrospectively evaluated patients with polymyalgia rheumatica followed up at the rheumatology clinics of 10 tertiary hospitals. In total 51 patients, 36 patients (70.6%) were female. Age at disease onset was 67.4 yr. Twenty-three patients (45.1%) developed polymyalgia rheumatica in winter. Shoulder girdle ache was observed in 45 patients (90%) and elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate (> 40 mm/h) in 49 patients (96.1%). Initial steroid dose was 23.3 mg/d prednisolone equivalent. Time to normal erythrocyte sedimentation rate was 4.1 months. Only 8 patients (15.7%) achieved remission. Among 41 patients followed up, 28 patients (68.3%) had flare at least once. Number of flares was 1.5 +/- 1.6. The frequency of flare was significantly lower in patients with remission (P = 0.02). In Korea, polymyalgia rheumatica commonly develops during winter. Initial response to steroid is fairly good, but the prognosis is not benign because remission is rare with frequent relapse requiring long-term steroid treatment.
Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Anti-Inflammatory Agents/administration & dosage/*therapeutic use ; Blood Sedimentation ; Cohort Studies ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Polymyalgia Rheumatica/*drug therapy/epidemiology ; Prognosis ; Recurrence ; Republic of Korea/epidemiology ; Retrospective Studies ; Seasons ; Steroids/administration & dosage/*therapeutic use

The widespread pursuit of a thin physique may have a detrimental impact on the wellbeing of preadolescents. The influence of body image distortions on the lifestyles, dieting behaviors, and psychological factors was investigated in 631 fifth and sixth grade children in Kyeonggi-do, Korea. Children were classified into three weight groups (underweight, normal, and overweight) and three perception groups (underestimation, normal, and overestimation). Necessary information was obtained by questionnaire, and each subject's weight status was determined by the Rohrer index calculated from the annual measurement records, which were obtained from the school. According to their current weights, 57.4% of children were normal and 32.2% were overweight or obese, 16.6% of the children overestimated their body weight, and 55.2% had an undistorted body image. Overweight children had desirable lifestyles and dietary habits and presented reasonable weight control behaviors. Compared to those without distortion, the overestimated group had greater interest in weight control (P = 0.003) and dissatisfaction with their body weights (P = 0.011), presented unhealthy reasons to lose weight (P = 0.026), and had higher scores for "feeling sad when comparing own body with others" (P = 0.000) and for "easily getting annoyed and tired" (P = 0.037), even though they had similar obesity indices. More subjects from the overestimation group (P = 0.006) chose drama/movies as their favorite TV programs, suggesting a possible role for the media in body image distortion. These findings suggest that body image distortion can lead preadolescents to develop stress about obesity and unhealthy dieting practices, despite similar obesity indices to those without distorted body images. These results emphasize the importance of having an undistorted body image.
Body Image ; Body Weight ; Child ; Depression ; Diet ; Food Habits ; Humans ; Korea ; Life Style ; Obesity ; Overweight ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Weights and Measures

The study was conducted to assess school dietitians' preferences for traditional foods, to determine the association with their perception and usage status, and to develop the strategies to increase its utilization of traditional foods in school lunches. The information was obtained by the self-administered questionnaire from the subjects, which were 198 dietitians in schools located in Seoul and Gyeonggi-do. According to the preference for traditional foods, subjects were distributed into three groups (High = 54, Medium = 128, Low = 16). The significances of differences between groups were determined using SPSS 12.0 at p < 0.05. Compared to the dietitians with lower (medium and low) preferences, those with high preferences answered that they had better knowledge (p < 0.001) for traditional foods, and served them more in school lunches (p < 0.01). Also, more dieticians in the high preference group not only felt that they need to train school administrators (p < 0.01) as well as themselves (p < 0.05), but also were currently providing students with the nutrition education on traditional foods (p < 0.05). The results presented the evidence suggesting that having dietitians with higher preference for traditional foods can offer an effective strategy to increase the opportunities for schoolchildren to be exposed to traditional foods. Development of the standard recipes for use in school lunches by the government or the association was answered as the best strategy to increase the use of traditional foods, regardless of the dietitians' preferences.
Administrative Personnel ; Food Preferences ; Humans ; Lunch ; Surveys and Questionnaires

BACKGROUND: T-SPOT.TB is a sensitive test that detects interferon-gamma producing T-cells in tuberculosis patients following stimulation with tuberculosis-specific antigens. Our study was aimed to investigate the possible causes of false negative results of the test by analyzing the patients with positive acid-fast bacilli (AFB) culture and negative T-SPOT.TB results. METHODS: We investigated 138 patients with positive AFB culture results reported between January 2009 and April 2010. Medical records of these patients were reviewed for the results of T-SPOT.TB test, AFB culture, PCR for Mycobacterium tuberculosis (TB-PCR), chest X-ray, drug treatment, etc. Diagnosis of tuberculosis was confirmed by positive TB-PCR or identification of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB). Sensitivity of T-SPOT.TB test was calculated and the possible causes of AFB culture positive and T-SPOT.TB negative results were analyzed. RESULTS: T-SPOT.TB test was performed in 63 of the 138 patients with AFB culture positive results. Fifty-six (88.9%) were positive and 7 patients (11.1%) were negative on T-SPOT.TB test. Of these 7 negative cases, 4 were confirmed as nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM), 2 were suspected as NTM and diagnosis could not be confirmed in 1. Six of these 7 patients were over 70 yr old and 6 patients had lymphocytopenia. T-SPOT.TB negative results were not observed in any of the 44 patients confirmed to have active tuberculosis (sensitivity 100%). CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that T-SPOT.TB test is very sensitive for diagnosing active tuberculosis. NTM may be the main cause of AFB culture positive and T-SPOT.TB negative results, but MTB infection in immunocompromised patients also has to be considered.
Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Bacillus/*isolation & purification ; Culture Media ; Female ; Humans ; Lymphocyte Count ; Lymphopenia/diagnosis/microbiology ; Male ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Reagent Kits, Diagnostic ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Tuberculosis/*diagnosis/microbiology/radiography

The purpose of this study was to investigate the nutrition and diet related knowledge, attitude, and behavior of elementary school children in Seoul. The subjects included were 439 (male 236, female 203) elementary school children in the 4th to the 6th grades. The statistical analysis was conducted using SPSS 12.0 program. The average obesity index (OI) was 104.98 and 99.82 for male and female subjects, respectively. The average percentage of underweight, normal, overweight and obese of subjects was 33.7%, 32.8%, 12.3%, and 19.4%, respectively. The percentage of the underweight group of female subjects was higher than that of the male subjects. The percentage of the obese group of male subjects was higher than that of the female subjects. The average score of nutrition knowledge, nutrition attitude and dietary behavior was 6.8, 7.44, and 7.34, respectively. Dietary behavior of male subjects was positively correlated with parents' education levels, monthly household income and nutrition attitude. Dietary behavior of female subjects was positively correlated with monthly household income, nutrition knowledge and nutrition attitude. Dietary behavior of female subjects was positively correlated with obesity index (OI). Proper nutrition education and intervention are required for the improvement of elementary school children's nutrition knowledge, nutrition attitudes and dietary behaviors.
Child ; Diet ; Family Characteristics ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Obesity ; Overweight ; Thinness

For the purposes of participation in research projects, living in a laboratory has become popular among male university students who tend to have less opportunity for nutrition education and overestimate their own health, suggesting possibilities of many undesirable practices of lifestyle and dietary habits. Therefore, this study was conducted to investigate and compare health-related lifestyle practices, dietary habits, nutrition knowledge, food preference and dietary behaviors of the male university students according to residence type. The subjects were 260 (34, 15, 44, and 167, respectively for lab-living, self-boarding, dormitory and commuting) male engineering majors in the Gyeonggi area. Self-administered questionnaires consisted of general characteristics, health-related lifestyle practices, dietary habits, fast food consumption, nutrition knowledge, preference for foods and tastes, and selfexamination of dietary behaviors. Lab-living subjects showed many undesirable practices, particularly with more smokers (p < 0.05), irregular eating (p < 0.01), overeating (p < 0.05) and skipping breakfast (p < 0.01), compared to the dormitory students and more time in computer/TV usage (p < 0.05), overeating (p < 0.05), more frequent use of fastfood (p < 0.05), less nutrition knowledge (p < 0.01) and less intake of milk/dairy products (p < 0.01) and fruits (p < 0.01), compared to commuting subjects. More smokers (p < 0.05) and irregular (p < 0.01) and unrelaxed meal times (p < 0.05), compared to the dormitory group, and less intake of fruits (p < 0.01) and dietary fiber (p < 0.01), compared to the commuting group were shown as undesirable practices of the self-boarding group. Therefore, continuous effort should be made to correct undesirable health- and diet-related practices found in this study in order to improve nutritional status as well as general health by developing a nutrition education program and contents of lectures focusing on more specific problems according to each subgroup such as lab-living and self-boarding male university students.
Breakfast ; Dietary Fiber ; Eating ; Education ; Fast Foods ; Food Habits* ; Food Preferences ; Fruit ; Gyeonggi-do ; Humans ; Hyperphagia ; Lectures ; Life Style* ; Male* ; Meals ; Nutritional Status ; Transportation ; Surveys and Questionnaires