• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.55 no.2
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• pp.211-226
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• 2022

Choline, an essential nutrient for humans, is required for the structural integrity of the cell membranes, methyl-group metabolism, synthesis of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, synthesis of the membrane phospholipid components of the cell membranes, and the transport of lipids and cholesterol. Choline can be synthesized in the body, but it is insufficient to meet the daily requirements and hence it must be obtained through the diet. In the United States/Canada, Australia/New Zealand, Europe, China, and Taiwan, the adequate intake (AI) and tolerable upper intake level (UL) of choline have been established, while the establishment of the 2020 Dietary Reference Intakes for Koreans (KDRI) for choline was postponed due to the lack of a choline database for Korean foods and studies on the choline intake of Koreans. However, as part of the preparation work for the 2020 DRI revision and finalization, choline intake and the possibility of disease occurrence were verified through analysis of published data. The groundwork for the subsequent establishment of a choline DRI was laid through a literature search, evaluation, and review of the literature reported from 1949 up to 2019. This can be regarded as the culmination of this project. According to the results of randomized controlled trials (RCTs), cohort studies, case-control studies, and cross-sectional observational studies in humans, approximately 400-500 mg/day of choline intake was effective in preventing liver function damage (fatty liver), neural tube damage, cardiovascular disease, breast cancer, and cognitive function improvement. The same amount of choline intake, however, also correlated with the risk of prostate and colorectal cancer. At present, there is limited information available on choline intake and health outcomes, particularly for the Korean population. More human studies, including clinical trials on the requirements and the physiological benefits associated with dietary intake, are needed to establish the KDRI for choline.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.13 no.6
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• pp.922-933
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• 2008

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of nutrition education using Food Exchange System on elementary students' nutrition knowledge, dietary attitude and nutrients intake. Nutrition education lessons (40 min /lesson, 4 times), '5 major nutrients and functions', '6 food groups and sources of 6 food groups', 'good choice of snacks and eating out' as class lesson, 'daily needed energy and food exchange units' as individual lesson, were provided to 70 elementary students (4th grade 33 students, 5th grade 37 students) in Jeonbuk Province. We assessed the changes in nutrition knowledge, dietary attitude, food habit using a questionnaire and nutrient intake using 24 hr recall method by nutrition education. In nutrition knowledge, there were significant increases in scores of 'functions of carbohydrate', 'functions of protein', 'functions of lipid', 'foods of carbohydrate', and 'foods of lipid'. In dietary attitude, there were significant increases in scores of 'taking a meal with joy', 'taking a meal at ease', 'taking a meal with sufficient protein intake' and 'taking a meal without spicy foods' by nutrition education. There were significant changes in the type of breakfast and in the frequency of snacks. After education, in type of breakfast, it showed higher number of students ate rice oriented meal than they did before education. and in frequency of snacks, it showed lower number of students ate snacks 'over 3 times' than they did before education. In Carbohydrate : Protein : Fat (CPF) ratio (%), it was significantly changed from 55.8 : 17.7 : 26.6 to 63.6 : 15.3 : 21.1. In evaluation of nutrient intake by Dietary Reference Intakes for Koreans (KDRIs), vitamin A, thiamin, niacin, vitamin $B_6$, calcium, phosphate, iron and zinc showed positive changes in distribution of number of children by intake level. That is, there were significant improvements in intakes of vitamin A, thiamin, niacin, vitamin $B_6$, calcium, phosphate, iron and zinc. These results showed that nutrition education using Food Exchange System for elementary students improved nutrition knowledge, dietary attitude and nutrients intake. It suggest that nutrition education using Food Exchange System may improve dietary behaviors and reduce an incidence of obesity in elementary students.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.7 no.6
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• pp.503-509
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• 2013

There is little information on dietary vitamin K intake and nutritional status of daily requirements of vitamin K in Korea. The objective of this study was to investigate the vitamin K intake and major food sources of Vitamin K in Koreans. The survey data from the 2010-2011 Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey of 7,792 subjects (aged 19-64 years) were examined. Total vitamin K intake was calculated from 24-hour dietary recall using a vitamin K food database, Computer Aided Nutritional analysis Program and the United States Department of Agriculture database. The geometric mean of vitamin K was estimated as $322.40{\pm}6.33ug/day$ for men and $271.20{\pm}4.92ug/day$ for women. Daily vitamin K intake increased significantly with age (p for trend < 0.001). The main food source of vitamin K was vegetables (72.84%), including cabbage kimchi (19.26%), spinach (17.38%), sesame leaves (7.11%), radish leaves (6.65%), spring onions (6.28%), and laver (4.82%), followed by seaweed, seasonings, and fat and oils. We observed that the vitamin K intake of Koreans was relatively higher than that reported by other studies in Western countries and differed depending on age.

• Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.39-43
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• 1999

Anthropometric measurements, particularly weight and height, are the most commonly employed measures of nutritional status in epidemiologic studies because of their simplicity and ease of collection. However, the usefulness of the anthropometric indicator is controversial. The aim of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of the anthropometric indicator to represent the nutritional status of individual adult in epidemiologic studies. In order to evaluate the usefulness of the anthropometric indicator to represent the nutritional status of individual, the validity in terms of sensitivity and specificity of anthropometric indicators was estimated by comparing the biochemical indicators to the reference indicators. The relative validity of dietary intake indicators was also measured for comparison between the three indicators of biochemistry, anthropometry and dietary assessment. The results showed that sensitivity of weight and height and dietary indicators were 16.7 an 50.5, respectively comparing the reference value of 100 as biochemical indicator in identifying anemic adults. Whereas the sensitivity of weight and height and dietary indicators were 63.6 and 36.4, respectively comparing reference value of 100 in identifying hyperlipidemic individuals(obesity). In conclusion, the validity of weight and height is much lower than that of biochemical indicator, burt weight and height still has some usefulness in identifying anemic individuals. Especially, it is more useful in identifying hyperlipidemic individual adults thant in identifying anemic individuals.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.6 no.3
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• pp.246-253
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• 2012

The Framingham risk score (FRS) has been used to assess the risk of a cardiovascular event and to identify patients for risk factor modifications. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship of the FRS with dietary intake and inflammatory biomarkers. We conducted a cross-sectional study of 180 men ($49.2{\pm}10.2$ years) with MS. Serum levels of high sensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and adiponectin were examined. Participants were asked to complete the food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) using the previous 1 year as a reference point. The absolute cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk percentage over 10 years was calculated to estimate the FRS, which was classified as low risk (< 10%), intermediate risk (10-20%), and high risk (> 20%). Mean intake of polyunsaturated fatty acids was lower in subjects who had > 20% FRS than in subjects who had < 10% FRS ($3.7{\pm}1.9$ g/day vs. $4.7{\pm}1.9$ g/day; P < 0.05). Significant differences in the Index of Nutritional Quality of protein, phosphorus, iron, vitamin A, vitamin $B_1$, niacin, vitamin $B_6$, and vitamin C were observed between the > 20% FRS group and the < 10% FRS group (P < 0.05). IL-6 concentrations were significantly lower in subjects with a < 10% FRS than in subjects who were 10-20% FRS or > 20% FRS ($0.91{\pm}0.26$ vs. $1.48{\pm}033$ vs. $2.72{\pm}0.57$ pg/mL, respectively; P < 0.05). IL-6 and dietary intake of polyunsaturated fatty acids together explained 6.6% of the variation in FRS levels in a stepwise multiple regression model. Our results provide some evidence that dietary intake in the higher CVD risk group was inferior to that in the lower risk group and that dietary fat intake and IL-6 were associated with FRS and MS in Korean men.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.47-51
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• 2018

BACKGROUND/OBJECTTIVES: The purposes of the study were to investigate folate intakes and plasma folate concentrations as well as estimate folate status in Korean healthy adults. SUBJECTS/METHODS: A total of 254 healthy 19- to 64-year-old adults (68 men and 186 women) living in Seoul metropolitan area, Gumi, and Kwangju, Korea participated. Three consecutive 24-hour dietary recalls, information on folate supplementation, and fasting blood samples were collected from the subjects. RESULTS: The mean dietary folate intakes were 587.4 and $499.2{\mu}g$ dietary folate equivalent (DFE)/day for men and women, respectively. The median dietary intakes of men and women were 566.6 and $474.6{\mu}g\;DFE/day$, respectively. Forty subjects (16.7% of total) less total folate than the estimated average requirement (EAR). Folate intakes of 23.3% of men and 34.8% of women aged 19-29 years did not meet the EAR for folate. Major food sources consumed for dietary folate were baechukimchi (Chinese cabbage kimchi), rice, spinach, eggs, and laver, which provided 44% of dietary folate intake for the subjects. Plasma folate concentrations were 23.4 nmol/L for men and 28.3 nmol/L for women, and this level was significantly lower in men than in women. Approximately 13% of men and 3% of women were folate-deficient, and the percentages of subjects showing folate concentrations lower than 10 nmol/L were 27.9% of men and 6.4% of women. CONCLUSIONS: Folate intakes of Korean adults in this study were generally adequate. However, one-third of young adults had inadequate folate intakes.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.53 no.2
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• pp.141-154
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• 2020

Purpose: Atopic dermatitis (AD), a typical chronic disease in children, is an allergy disease that is highly associated with food. Thus, attention to food intake is needed to prevent and manage it. Therefore, we analyzed differences in food and nutrient intakes depending on AD status in under 12-year-old children. Methods: A total of 2,690 participants were enrolled in this study from the combined 2013-2015 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Subjects were divided into an AD group and normal group (non-AD group). General characteristic, food and nutrients intakes, and prevalence of insufficient and excessive nutrient intake were analyzed using χ² test and regression analyses. The AD odds ratio (OR) for insufficient and excessive nutrient intakes was analyzed using multiple logistic regression analyses. Results: Food and nutrient intakes were not significantly different between the AD and non-AD groups. However, the ratio of calcium intake to recommended nutrient intake was about 70% in both groups, which can be attributed to the overall lack of calcium intake among Korean children. There were no differences in energy or nutrient intakes between the groups, but compared with Korean Dietary Reference Intakes for Koreans, the appropriate intake ratios of fat and vitamin C in the AD group were higher than those in the non-AD group. The AD OR decreased when fat was consumed at above appropriate levels and vitamin C was consumed at lower or excess levels. Conclusion: In children, AD may be related to the nutrient intake ratio of fats and vitamin C, and we speculate that these results were affected by dietary restrictions for AD management.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Culture
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.159-168
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• 1998

This survey was carried out to obtain the information concerning nutritional status, including factors of food intake and health condition of elderly living in Ulsan area. Main results were as follows. 1) Average height of subjects was close to Korean reference, while weight was below Korean reference, average obesity rate and body mass index were +6.93% and 21.9. 2) In health related factors, 41% of subjects exercised regularly, 31.6% of subjects drank alcoholic beverage, and 41.4% of subjects smoked currently. 3) Mean food habits score was 32.1(ranging from 10 to 50) and milk and lipid food intake were decreased. 4) Dietary intake data showed the average daily intake of all nutrients except phosphorus, were lower than RDA, especially vitamin A, calcium and zinc were lower than other nutrients. According to the percentage of RDA, vitamin A was the nutrient found to be least sufficient. 5) Among the various influential factors resident type, pocket money, exercise and smoking influenced on nutrient intake considerably

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.327-339
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• 2009

It is known that Korean pregnant women take iron supplements at a higher than the recommended level. This study was designed to provide data on current iron intake levels both from food sources and supplement to better guide iron supplement use during pregnancy. We also explored associations of iron supplement intake levels with various sociocultural factors and pregnancy outcomes. Dietary intakes of 510 pregnant women were assessed by a validated 102-item food frequency questionnaire, and information on types and amounts of nutritional supplement intakes were also attained. While dietary intake levels of most nutrients exceeded the KDRIs (Korea Dietary Reference Intakes: EAR: Estimated Average Requirements), folate fell short of the KDRIs. A total of 428 women (83.9%) reported to take iron supplement. The pregnant women were divided into the three groups (group I: Fe supplement intake ${\le}$ EAR, group II: EAR < Fe supplement intake ${\le}$ 3 times of EAR, group III: 3 times of EAR < Fe supplement intake). The mean dietary intake of iron was 24% of the total iron intake for pregnant women. Iron intake from food was not significantly different among I, II, and III. In case of iron intake from supplements, the most frequent dose (34.1%) was 90-100 mg/day, and the mean iron supplement intake was 362% of the EAR. The study findings showed that those with higher levels of iron supplements had better meal quality measured by NAR (Nutrient Adequacy Ratio) and INQ (Index of Nutrient Quality). In addition iron supplement intake levels were significantly related to age (20s: 66.5 ${\pm}$ 38.6 mg/day, 30s: 77.3 ${\pm}$ 47.8 mg/day, p < 0.0116) and experience of childbirth (1st pregnancy: 70.9 ${\pm}$ 41.2 mg/day, 2nd pregnancy: 64.5 ${\pm}$ 39.5 mg/day, ${\ge}$ 3rd pregnancy: 94.4 ${\pm}$ 63.8 mg/day, p < 0.005). However, no significant difference was found between iron supplement intake levels and various pregnancy outcomes including birth weight, birth height, gestational age, weight gain during pregnancy, and jaundice. It is worrisome that iron intake by supplement use greatly exceeded the EAR, suggesting the need of appropriate guidelines for iron supplement intake during pregnancy. Thus iron overdose from supplements in pregnancy should be considered as a serious condition.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.37 no.3
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• pp.193-201
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• 2004

The objective was to evaluate the factors influencing on the growth of children aged 3 - 6 years by mini dietary assessment and anthropometric indices in 556 children and by analyzing mineral contents of hair from 273 children by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The mean concentration of zinc (Zn) in hair was 68.9 $\pm$ 31.1 ppm and the zinc level of 91 ％ children was less than 60％ of the reference value of 180 ppm. The mean content of lead (Pb) in hair was 1.76 $\pm$ 1.20 ppm, but only 67％ of 273 children was within the reference value of 2 ppm and the lead level of 33％ of children was 2 - 4 times higher than the reference value. The level of Zn was negatively correlated with Pb content (r = -0.305, p 〈 0.01). Hair Zn content, regardless of age, was significantly positively correlated with height (r = 0.214) and body weight (r = 0.159). The height of 95.3％ children was belonged to the normal range of 90 - 109.9％ of standard value and the body weight of 49.8％ children was in the range of 90 - 109.9％ of standard value. However, 8.1 ％ children was overweighted (110 - 119.9％ of standard) and 9.4％ children was obese (120 - 149.9％ of standard) and 0.9％ children was severe obese (〉 150％) which resulted in total 10.3％ obese. Contrary to our expectation, 32.8％ children was underweight (70 - 89.9％ of standard) and 36％ of the underweight children showed the low content of zinc (10 - 49 ppm) in hair. There was no significant correlation between dietary intake of Zn and hair Zn content. Hair Zn content was low even though children consumed greater than 75％ of their requirement for zinc. Regardless of dietary intake of Zn, hair Zn level was rather negatively correlated to the content of Pb in hair. 38.8％ children had an unbalanced diet which resulted in lower intake of calorie, Ca, Zn, vitamin B$_2$ compared with those consuming variety of foods. Therefore, it would be needed that new approach for nutrition education to improve eating habit having the unbalanced diet in preschool children. It might be also suggested to develop new food products to complement the nutrients of Zn, Ca, Fe as snacks or dietary supplement for Korean preschool children.