Comparison of UCP2 Polymorphism and Dietary Habits in University Students

This study aimed to research meal quality and the dietary behaviors of college students for desirable dietary lives and provides basic data for nutritional education by examining polymorphism distribution of the UCP2 gene according to gender, by investigating attitudes in terms of their dietary habits and dietary lives, and by analyzing serum lipid levels and body composition. A survey was conducted with a total of 222 students - 93 male and 129 females. Based on a selfreporting method, the questionnaires were answered over 20 minutes, and UCP2 insertion/deletion gene polymorphism and blood samples were also analyzed. The results showed that the male students and female students had average BMI of 22.50 and $20.73\;kg/m^2$, respectively. According to answers regarding their dietary lives, 51.4% of the students showed 'irregular eating' patterns, which is regarded as something to be corrected. In terms of eating regularity, 51.6% of the male students and 59.7% of the female students had irregular meal schedules. As the most important meal of a day, 64.0% of the students answered 'breakfast' but only 53.6% answered that they ate breakfast everyday. In addition, 39.8% of the male students and 50.4% of the female students ate between meals 'once a day'. When questioned if they were satisfied with their body shape, 17.8 and 45.2% of the male students answered they were 'satisfied' or needed to 'gain weight', respectively, whereas 17.8 and 77.5% of the female students answered they were 'satisfied' or needed to 'lose weight', respectively. The results of the UCP2 gene polymorphism analysis showed that 33.7% of the males belonged to the DI heterozygote group, 64.2% belonged to the DD homozygote group, and 2.1% belonged to the II homozygote group. For the female students, 63.4% belonged to the DI heterozygote group, 35.1% belonged to the DD homozygote group, and 1.5% belonged to the II homozygote group. According to the blood and serum lipid analyses, the male students showed average HDL-cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, and hemoglobin levels of 57.20, 93.80, and 15.00 mg/dL, respectively, while the female students presented average levels of 56.69, 102.88, and 13.13 mg/dL, respectively. In conclusion, this study found no significant effects in terms of UCP2 gene polymorphisms, but it is suggested that practical plans must be designed that allow college students to use nutritional knowledge in their daily lives, and in particular, nutrition education needs to be develop that would enable female college students to recognize their bodies appropriately and to control their weight in desirable ways.

대학생의 UCP2 유전자 다형성과 식습관 비교연구