Abstract
Recently, childhood obesity is increasing in Korea mainly due to westernized dietary pattern. The purpose of this study is to investigate diet pattern(habit and behavior), nutritional knowledge and taste favor in normal and obese children. We carried out anthropometries and self questionaire about life style among the 5th-grader in elementary school(88 boys, 102 girls) in Seoul. The results are as follows : Physical conditions are boys’average hight and weight 142.0cm, 37.5kg ; and girls’143.7cm, 35.6kg. BMI are normal group 38.7% and abnormal group 61.3%(obese 24.2% underweight 16.1% overweight 14.0% very underweight 7.0%) A great part of obese children live in apartment house(79.5% of obese children in southern Seoul; 60.2% in northern Seoul). Obese parents have obese children. Diet behavior, diet pattern, food habit and food preferance of children are similar to their parents, especially their mothers. Preferance in taste of children follows in order of hot, sweet and mild. Especially obese children favor sweet taste more than others. The 61% of them are interested in weight control. Their nutritional knowledges are poor(4.9/10). They like more westernized food(hamberger) than korean food(In-jul-me).