• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.38 no.5
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• pp.390-401
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• 2023

Major components of lac coloring include laccaic acids A, B, C, and E. The Korean Food Additive Code regulates the use of lac coloring and prohibits its use in ten types of food products including natural food products. Since no commercial standards are available for laccaic acids A, B, C, and E, a standard for lac pigment itself was used to separate laccaic acids from the lac pigment molecule. A standard for each laccaic acid was then obtained by fractionation. To obtain pure lac pigment for use in food by High performance Liquid Chromatography Photo Diode Array (PDA), a C8 column yielded the best resolution among various tested columns and mobile phases. A qualitative analytical method using High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) Tandem Mass(LC-MS/MS) was developed. The conditions for fast and precise sample preparation begin with extraction using methanol and 0.3% ammonium phosphate, followed by concentration. The degree of precision observed for the analyses of ham, tomato juice and Red pepper paste was 0.3-13.1% (Relative Standard Deviation (RSD%)), degree of accuracy was 90.3-122.2% with r²=0.999 or above, and recovery rate was 91.6-114.9%. The limit of detection was 0.01-0.15 ㎍/mL, and the limits of quantitation ranged from 0.02 to 0.47 ㎍/mL. Lac pigment was not detected in 117 food products in the 10 food categories for which the use of lac pigment is banned. Multiple laccaic acids were detected in 105 food products in 6 food categories that are allowed to use lac color. Lac pigment concentrations range from 0.08 to 16.67 ㎍/mL.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.23 no.3 s.31
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• pp.324-337
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• 1990

To assess the effectiveness of the interventions in working environment and personal hygiene for the occupational exposure to the lead, 156 workers (116 exposed subjects and 40 controls) of a newly established battery factory were examined for their blood lead concentration (Pb-B) in every 3 months up to 18 months. Air lead concentration (Pb-A) of the workplaces was also checked for 3 times in 6 months interval from August 1987. Environmental intervention included the local exhaust ventilation and vacuum cleaning of the floor. Intervention of the personal hygiene included the daily change of clothes, compulsory shower after work and hand washing before meal, prohibition of cigarette smoking and food consumption at the work site and wearing mask. Mean Pb-B of the controls was $21.97{\pm}3.36{\mu}g/dl$ at the preemployment examination and slightly increased to $22.75{\pm}3.38{\mu}g/dl$ after 6 months. Mean Pb-B of the workers who were employed before the factory was in operation (Group A) was $20.49{\pm}3.84{\mu}g/dl$ on employment and it was increased to $23.90{\pm}5.30{\mu}g/dl$ after 3 months (p<0.01). Pb-B was increased to $28.84{\pm}5.76{\mu}g/dl$ 6 months after the employment which was 1 month after the initiation of intervention program. It did not increase thereafter and ranged between $26.83{\mu}g/dl\;and\;28.28{\mu}g/dl$ in the subsequent 4 tests. Mean Pb-B of the workers who were employed after the factory had been in operation but before the intervention program was initiated (Group B) was $16.58{\pm}4/53{\mu}g/dl$ before the exposure and it was increased to $28.82{\pm}5.66{\mu}g/dl$(P<0.01) in 3 months later (1 month after the intervention). The values of subsequent 4 tests remained between 26.46 and $28.54{\mu}g/dl$. Mean Pb-B of the workers who were employed after intervention program had been started (Group C) was $19.45{\pm}3.44{\mu}g/dl$ at the preemployment examination and gradually increased to $22.70{\pm}4.55{\mu}g/dl$ after 3 months(P<0.01), $23.68{\pm}4.18{\mu}g/dl$ after 6 months, and $24.42{\pm}3.60{\mu}g/dl$ after 9 months. Work stations were classified into 4 parts according to Pb-A. The Pb-A of part I, the highest areas, were $0.365mg/m^3$, and after the intervention the levels were decreased to $0.216mg/m^3\;and\;0.208mg/m^3$ in follow-up tests. The Pb-A of part II was decreased from $0.232mg/m^3\;to\;0.148mg/m^3,\;and\;0.120mg/m^3$ after the intervention. Pb-A of part III and W was tested only after intervention and the Pb-A of part III were $0.124mg/m^3$ in Jannuary 1988 and $0.081mg/m^3$ in August 1988. The Pb-A of part IV not stationed at one place but moving around, was $0.110mg/m^3$ in August 1988. There was no consistent relationship between Pb-B and Pb-A. Pb-B of the group A and B workers in the part of the highest Pb-A were lower than those of the workers in the parts of lower Pb-A. Pb-B of the workers in the part of the lowest Pb-A incerased more rapidly. Pb-B of group C workers was the highest in part I and the lowest in part IV. These findings suggest that Pb-B is more valid method than Pb-A for monitoring the health of lead workers and intervention in personal hygiene is more effective than environmental intervention.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.202-208
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• 2005

This study was conducted to examine the food habits, knowledge of nutrition and actual conditions of food ingestion of adolescent middle school students according to questionnaire answers. Questionnaires were completed by 524 students, divided into a healthy group (n=289) and an unhealthy group (n=235) according to clinical signs. Further questions were asked of the two groups in the areas of food habits, knowledge of nutrition and nutritional attitude. The results were as follows: Mean age of all subjects was 14, heights for male and female students were 162.0 em, and 157.2 cm, weights were 53.4 kg, and 49.4, respectively. Heights and weights of male students were greater than those of female students. The body mass index (BMI) for male and female students was 20.3 kg/$m^2$ and 20.0 kg/$m^2$, respectively, and all data were within normal ranges. There were no significant differences in mean age, height, weight, and BMI between the healthy and unhealthy groups. There was no significant difference in body image recognition between the two groups, although the ratio of dissatisfaction with their own body shape was significantly higher in the female unhealthy group (46.1%), than in the female healthy group (33.0%) (p<0.05). In the area of the struggle to control body weight during the previous year, the female unhealthy group (59.4%) was higher than the female healthy group (38.4%) (p<0.01). There was no significant difference in the scores between the two groups in the areas of knowledge of nutrition and the nutritional attitude. Meal frequency and meal patterns were showed that having breakfast less than 4x/week was significantly higher in the female unhealthy group (44.0%), than in the female healthy group (30.7%) (p<0.01). Meal frequency for suppers<4x/week showed that the female unhealthy group (18.8%) was also higher than the female healthy group (10.7%). Therefore, the unhealthy group exhibited a higher pattern of missing both breakfast and supper. The male unhealthy group (16.7%) dined out more frequently than the male healthy group (12.3%) (p<0.01), and female unhealthy group also indulged in snacking significantly more frequently than the female healthy group. The unhealthy group also ate only 1 item for meals more frequently than the healthy group and no significant difference. The conclusion of this study is that adolescent Korean middle school students, who showed a higher incidence of clinical symptoms, representing an unhealthy status, missed breakfast and supper, and dined out and indulged in snacking more frequently. Their quality of breakfast and satisfaction of body image were also lower than the healthy group. These results indicated that there is a high correlation between a Korean adolescent's health status, food habits and body image satisfaction. It is recommended that a more intense program of nutritional education and monitoring be introduce into the current Korean middle-school system in order to optimally support and maximize the health potential of the current population of Korean student.

• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
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• v.31 no.6
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• pp.508-519
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• 2017

There have been many studies on monitoring of biodiversity changes and preservation of Gwangneung Forest Biosphere Reserve (GFBR) in South Korea in recognition of the rare ecosystem that has been preserved for a long period. However, there are few studies on diversity and community characteristics of benthic macroinvertebrates as an indicator of stream health of GFBR. The purpose of this study was to assess the water quality of Bongseonsa Stream that penetrated through Gwangneung Forest and the nearby torrents by analyzing the benthic macroinvertebrates community during April to September 2016. The investigation collected a total of 114 species of benthic macroinvertebrates belonging to 56 families, 17 orders, 8 classes, and 5 phyla from the Bongseonsa Stream and Kwangneung Stream. Ephemeroptera and Trichoptera were the largest groups in species diversity with 30 species (32.3%) and 16 species (17.2%), respectively, and Tubificidae sp., Baetis fuscatus, Antocha KUa, and Cheumatopsyche brevilineata, which usually habit in contaminated streams, appeared frequently. Among the feeding function groups, the gatherers and hunters appeared relatively frequently, and the shredders and scrapers appeared frequently in the torrents. Among the habitat oriented groups, the clingers and burrower appeared more frequently and represented the microhabitats in the shallow areas. The result of the analysis of benthic macroinvertebrates community showed that the dominant index was $0.48{\pm}0.10$ in average while it was lowest with 0.33 in GS 8 of the Gwangneung Forest torrent and highest in BS 1 of Bongseonsa Stream. The diversity and richness indices were inversely proportional to the dominant index and were 2.53 and 4.22, respectively, in GS 8 where the dominant index was low. The result of the analysis of community stability showed that area I, which had high resistance and restoration, was high in Bongseonsa Stream while the area III, which had low resistance and restoration, was high in Gwangneung Forest, indicating that the water system in Gwangneung Forest had a wider distribution of specifies sensitive to agitation. The biological water quality assessment showed ESB of $50.88{\pm}17.69$, KSI of $1.11{\pm}0.57$, and BMI of $78.55{\pm}11.05$. GS 8 of Gwangneung Forest torrent was judged to be the highest priority protective water area with the best water environment and I class water quality with ESB of 63, KSI of 0.55, and BMI of 89.9. On the contrary, BS 1 of Bongseonsa Stream was judged to be the high priority improvement area that had the lowest water quality rating of III with ESB of 25, KSI of 2.13, and BMI of 62.7. Although the diversity of water beetle was higher in the water system of nearby Bongseonsa Stream than the water system inside the Gwangneung Forest, the annual community structure appeared to have distinct differences.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.56 no.4
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• pp.479-495
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• 2018

This study was carried out to research the multimedia fate modeling, concentration distribution and impact assessment of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) emitted from automobiles, which are known as carcinogenic and mutation chemicals. The amount of emissions of PAHs was determined based on the census data of automobiles at a target S-city and emission factors of PAHs, where multimedia fugacity modeling was conducted by the restriction of PAHs transfer between air-soil at the impervious area. PAHs' Concentrations and their distributions at several environmental media were predicted by multimedia fugacity model (level III). The residual amounts and the distributions of PAHs through mass transfer of PAHs between environment media were used to assess the health risk of PAHs at unsteady state (level IV), where the sensitivity analyses of the model parameter of each variable were conducted based on Monte Carlo simulation. The experimental result at S-city showed that Fluoranthene among PAHs substances are the highest residual concentrations (60%, 53%, 32% and 34%) at all mediums (atmospheric, water, soil, sediment), respectively, where most of the PAHs were highly accumulated in the sediment media (more than 80%). A result of PAHs concentration changes in S-city over the past 34 years identified that PAHs emissions from all environmental media increased from 1983 to 2005 and decreased until 2016, where the emission of heavy-duty vehicle including truck revealed the largest contribution to the automotive emissions of PAHs at all environment media. The PAHs concentrations in soil and water for the last 34 years showed the less value than the legal standards of PAHs, but the PAHs in air exceeded the air quality standards from 1996 to 2016. The result of this study is expected to contribute the effective management and monitoring of toxic chemicals of PAHs at various environment media of Metropolitan city.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing Administration
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.97-114
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• 1996

INSTRODUCTION Service quality is, unlike goods quality, an abstract and elusive constuct. Service quality and its requirements are not easily understood by consumers, and also present some critical research problems. However, quality is very important to marketers and consumers in that it has many strategic benefits in contributing to profitability of marketing activities and consumers' problem-solving activities. Moreover, despite the phenomenal growth of medical service sector, few researchers have attempted to define and model medical service quality. Especially, little research has focused on the evaluation of medical service quality and patient satisfaction from the perspectives of both the provider and the patient. As competition intensifies and patients are demanding higher quality of medical service, medical service quality and patient satisfaction has emerged as a critical research topic. The major purpose of this article is to explore the concept of medical service quality and its evaluation from both nurse and patient perspectives. This article attempts to achieve its purpose by (1)classfying critical service attibutes into threecategories(satisfiers, hygiene factors, and performance factors). (2)measuring the relative importance of need criteria, (3)evaluating SERVPERF model and SERVQUAL model in medical service sector, and (4)identifying the relationship between perceived quality and overall patient satisfaction. METHOD Data were gathered from a sample of 217 patients and 179 nurses in Seoul-area general hospitals. From the review of previous literature, 50 survey items representing various facets of the medical service quality were developed to form a questionnaire. A five-point scale ranging from "Strongly Agree"(5) to "Strongly Disagree"(1) accompanied each statement(expectation statements, perception statements, and importance statements). To measure overall satisfaction, a seven-point scale was used, ranging from "Very Satisfied"(7) to "Very Dissatisfied"(1) with no verbal labels for scale points 2 through 6 RESULTS In explaining the relationship between perceived performance and overall satisfaction, only 31 variables out of original 50 survey items were proven to be statistically significant. Hence, a penalty-reward analysis was performed on theses 31 critical attributes to find out 17 satisfiers, 8 hygiene factors, and 4 performance factors in patient perspective. The role(category) of each service quality attribute in relation to patient satisfaction was com pared across two groups, that is, patients and nurses. They were little overlapped, suggesting that two groups had different sets of 'perceived quality' attributes. Principal components factor analyses of the patients' and nurses' responses were performed to identify the underlying dimensions for the set of performance(experience) statements. 28 variables were analyzed by using a varimax rotation after deleting three obscure variables. The number of factors to be extracted was determined by evaluating the eigenvalue scores. Six factors wereextracted, accounting for 57.1% of the total variance. Reliability analysis was performed to refine the factors further. Using coefficient alpha, scores of .84 to .65 were obtained. Individual-item analysis indicated that all statements in each of the factors should remain. On 26 attributes of 31 critical service quality attributes, there were gaps between actual patient's importance of need criteria and nurse perceptions of them. Those critical attributes could be classified into four categories based on the relative importance of need criteria and perceived performance from the perspective of patient. This analysis is useful in developing strategic plans for performance improvement. (1) top priorities(high importance and low performance) (in this study)- more health-related information -accuracy in billing - quality of food - appointments at my convenience - information about tests and treatments - prompt service of business office -adequacy of accommodations(elevators, etc) (2) current strengths(high importance and high performance) (3)unnecessary strengths(low importance and high performance) (4) low priorities(low importance and low performance) While 26 service quality attributes of SERPERF model were significantly related to patient satisfation, only 13 attributes of SERVQUAL model were significantly related. This result suggested that only experience-based norms(SERVPERF model) were more appropriate than expectations to serve as a benchmark against which service experiences were compared(SERVQUAL model). However, it must be noted that the degree of association to overall satisfaction was not consistent. There were some gaps between nurse percetions and patient perception of medical service performance. From the patient's viewpoint, "personal likability", "technical skill/trust", and "cares about me" were most significant positioning factors that contributed patient satisfaction. DISCUSSION This study shows that there are inconsistencies between nurse perceptions and patient perceptions of medical service attributes. Also, for service quality improvement, it is most important for nurses to understand what satisfiers, hygiene factors, and performance factors are through two-way communications. Patient satisfaction should be measured, and problems identified should be resolved for survival in intense competitive market conditions. Hence, patient satisfaction monitoring is now becoming a standard marketing tool for healthcare providers and its role is expected to increase.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.64 no.2
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• pp.87-94
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• 2008

Background: Surveillance of TB drug resistance (DR) is essential for providing information on the magnitude and trends in resistance, for developing treatment guidelines and for monitoring the effect of interventions. Up to now national surveys of drug resistance of M. tuberculosis have been conducted four times since 1994 among patients registered at health centers. The purpose of this study is to estimate the prevalence of primary drug resistance among new cases identified in private sector, and to compare it with the previous national drug resistance surveys. Methods: The study collected results of drug susceptibility testing (DST) performed at the Korean Institute of Tuberculosis by the request of private sector from January 2003 to December 2005, and then finally selected new cases for the analysis from the database of Korean TB Surveillance (KTBS) by matching patients' name and social identification numbers. Results: Of the 5,132 new patients included in the study, 689 (13.4%) patients were found to have drug resistance at least one drug, 530 patients (10.3%) were isoniazid resistant, 195 patients (3.8%) were multi-drug resistant (MDR), and 21 patients (0.4%) were extensively drug resistant (XDR). The rate of drug resistance tended to decrease annually but it was not statistically significant. When compared with previous national DR surveys in 2003 and in 2004 respectively, they were not significantly different. Conclusion: The prevalence of DR among new cases managed in the private sector did not show significant difference from that of new patients registered in the public sector in the same year.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.42 no.3
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• pp.269-276
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• 2010

Total mercury and methylmercury concentrations were determined in 15 commonly consumed aquatic food species using total mercury analyzer and gas chromatography with electron capture detector. The mean total mercury and methylmercury concentrations (mg/kg) were 0.088 and 0.034 in mackerel, 0.061 and 0.016 in hair tail, 0.030 and 0.005 in yellow croaker, 0.032 and 0.008 in Alaska pollock, 0.059 and 0.023 in eastern catfish, 0.110 and 0.045 in snakehead, 0.030 and 0.011 in Japanese common squid, 0.026 and 0.009 in common octopus, 0.035 and 0.008 in swimming crab, 0.009 and not detected (ND) in oyster, 0.011 and ND in shortneck clam, 0.008 and ND in mussel, 0.018 and ND in sea mustard, 0.007 and ND in nori, and 0.019 and ND in sea tangle, respectively. The total weekly dietary intakes of total mercury and methylmercury were estimated, respectively, using food consumption data from diet surveys and the concentrations of total mercury and methylmercury from this study. They were $0.178\;{\mu}g/kg$ body weight (b.w.)/week (3.57% of provisional tolerable weekly intake (PTWI)) and $0.052\;{\mu}g/kg$ b.w./week (3.34% of PTWI) respectively, and all were within their respective PTWI set by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA). Therefore, considering that the main contributor to mercury intake in the diet is aquatic foods and that the 15 aquatic food species examined in this study are highly consumed, it is concluded that the mercury levels in the foods measured in this study do not present a concern for consumer health.

• Korean Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.39 no.1 s.115
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• pp.110-118
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• 2006

The Namyang Stream in Hwaong polder was planned for several water uses including recreation, where people can contact the water and consume some amount during the recreational activity. A human health risk was assessed from exposure to E. coli in the Namyang Stream, which receives partially treated wastewater from watershed. The QUAL2E model was applied to simulate stream water quality, and this model was calibrated and verified with field monitoring data. The calibration result showed a high correlation coefficient of greater than 0.9. The mean concentration of E. coli in the Namyang Stream from the QUAL2E output was in the range of 5,000 ${\sim}$ 8,000 MPN 100 mL^{-1}$, which exceeded national and international guidelines. The Beta-Poisson was used to estimate the microbial risk of pathogens ingestion and the Monte-Carlo analysis (10,000 trials) was used to estimate the risk characterization of uncertainty. The Microbial risk assessment showed that the risk ranged from 7.9 ${\times}\;10^{-6}\;to\;9.4\;{\times}10^{-6}$. Based on USEPA guidelines, the range of $10^{-6}\;to\;10^{-8}$ was considered reasonable levels of risk for communicable disease transmission from environmental exposure, and the risk above $10^{-4}$ was considered to be in the danger of infection. Therefore, water quality of the Namyang Stream might not be in the danger of infection although it exceeded national and international guidelines. However, it was in the range of communicable disease transmission, and thorough wastewater collection and treatment at the source is recommended to secure safe recreation water quality.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.53 no.2
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• pp.215-229
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• 2020

Purpose: This study examines the attitude of South Korean adults toward food aid to North Korea and factors associated with it. Methods: An online survey involving 1,000 adults aged 19-69 years was conducted between September-October 2019. Throughout South Korea, the subjects were proportionally distributed with respect to gender, age, and region, to represent South Korean adults. Results: A total of 44.6% of the respondents agreed (Agreement group), 36.7% disagreed (Disagreement group), and 18.7% neither agreed nor disagreed to food aid to North Korea. Compared to the Disagreement group, the Agreement group had a higher concern of food aid to North Korea and a more positive perception on the effect of it. The Agreement group selected "direct assistance from the government" whereas the Disagreement group chose "support through international organizations" as the most appropriate channel for food aid to North Korea. Logistic regression analysis revealed that South Korean adults showing a more positive perception on the effect of food aid to North Korea were more likely to agree to the aid (odds ratio [OR], 19.32). Moreover, compared to the conservatives, the progressives were more likely to agree to food aid to North Korea (OR, 5.94). South Korean adults in their 40-50s were more likely to agree to food aid to North Korea than those in their 20-30s (OR, 2.81). South Korean adults with a higher concern of food aid to North Korea (OR, 3.93) and a greater positive perception on Korean unification (OR, 1.88) were more likely to agree to food aid to North Korea. Conclusion: The most important factor associated with the attitude of South Korean adults toward food aid to North Korea was their perception on the subsequent effect. As strategies to draw social consensus on food aid to North Korea, we recommend systematizing the monitoring process on the effect of providing food aid to North Korea and informing the public of the outcomes.