Effects of Dietary Attitudes on the Nutritional Status of Nurses in Kyungnam Province

This study has investigated the effect of dietary attitudes on nutritional status of nurses living in Kyungnam province. A total of 249 muses working at hospitals in the Kyungnam area participated in this study. The general characteristics and dietary attitudes of the subjects were surveyed using a self-administered questionnaire, and nutrient intakes were examined using one day 24-hour recall method from November 14 to December 20, in 2001. The data of nutrient intakes were analyzed by the Computer Aided Nutritional Analysis Program and then the diet quality was estimated using the Index of Nutritional Quality (INQ). The subjects were classified as the high score group (17.3 %), medium score group (54.2%), and low score group (28.5%) based on dietary attitude score. The results were as follows: Average age of subjects was 27.1 years old, average nursingexperience was 5.7 years, and 70.7% of the subjects graduated from a junior college. The rate of shift work (45.4%) and non-shift work (54.6%) were similar. The average score on dietary attitudes in thehigh score group was 78.8, and those in he medium score group and in the low score group were 58.6 and 40.8 out of 100 points respectively. The average intake of energy (p < 0.001), carbohydrate (p < 0.001), protein (p < 0.05), animal protein (p < 0.01), animal fat (p < 0.05), vitamin $B_1$ (p < 0.01), vitamin $B_2$ (p < 0.0l), niacin (p < 0.001), Ca (p < 0.001), Fe (p < 0.001), animal Fe (p < 0.01), P (p < 0.001), and crude fiber (p < 0.00l), were significantly higher in the high score group than those in the medium score group and low score group. In the high score group, the average intake of protein, vitamin $B_1$, niacin, vitamin C and P were above 125% of the Korean RDA, and in medium score group, those of vitamin C and P, and in low score group, that of vitamin C were above 125% of the Korean RDA. In the high score group, nutrient of intake below 75% of the Korean RDA was Ca, and those in medium score group were vitamin $B_2$, Ca, and Fe, and those in low score group were energy, vitamin $B_2$, Ca and Fe. The intake ratio of Ca and P showed an unbalanceof 1:2, and that of animal protein/plant protein, and that of animal fat/plant fat were high (1.45-1.64) in all group;. The dietary attitude had a positive correlation (p < 0.00l) with nutrition intake except vitamin A and vitamin C.