• Journal of the Korean Dietetic Association
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.44-52
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• 2000

Two hundred sixty six children were retrospectively surveyed from first to fifth grade to find out the status of obesity during four years. The obesity index was gained by height and weight data from student's health file and the data about eating behaviors and weight control behaviors, etc. were collected by questionnaires. Children assigned to one of the following groups : underweight, normal, overweight and obese. The results were as follows ; 1. Obese children were 18.6%(n=27) of boys and 10.8%(n=13) of girls at fifth grade. 2. Twenty eight children among forty obese children at fifth grade were also overweight or obese at first grade, and the other twelve was normal. 3. Breakfast skipping rate was significantly high among underweight and obese group of boys(p<0.01).The most children(87.6%) had prejudice for special foods. 4. The rate of agreement between obesity index and self recognition of body image was 60.7% in boys and 63.6% in girls. 5. Forty two point five percent of children have ever tried weight control as exercise(35.7%), reducing sugars and snacks(27%), fasting(23.8%), avoiding fatty foods(12.7%), taking diet food or drug(0.8%). In conclusion, the prevalence of children obesity is gradually increasing and children tried weight control without right guidances. In order to prevent progress into adulthood obesity, nutrition education should be followed with school foodservice including the right perception for obesity, proper weight control and eating behavior modification.

• Research in Community and Public Health Nursing
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.469-479
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• 2007

Purpose: This study was carried out to investigate the knowledge of obesity and exercise , attitude to dietary habits and exercise, and physical activities and exercise in elementary school children to provide basic data for obese programs. Methods: The subjects were 850 elementary school children of grade 3-6 in C City and data were collected with a questionnaire. Results: Higher grade, female and overweight children recorded a higher knowledge score than lower grade, male and normal weight children. As for attitude to dietary habit, lower grade and female children had more positive attitude than higher grade and male children. Overweight children were more aware of the seriousness of exercise than normal weight children. In physical activity, lower grade and male children were higher than higher grade and female children. The more interested the children's family were in exercise, the higher score of physical activity they showed. Conclusion: In planning education for preventing obesity, it should give consideration to lower glade and male children. In addition, education for changing dietary habit attitude must be extended to higher grade and male children as well. It is effective to develop and apply physical activity improvement programs in the cooperation and involvement of their families.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.45 no.4
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• pp.211-218
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• 2012

Objectives: The objective of this study was to identify the differences in obesity rates among people with and without disabilities, and evaluate the relationship between obesity rates and the existence of disabilities or characteristics of disabilities. Methods: Mass screening data from 2008 from the National Disability Registry and National Health Insurance (NHI) are used. For analysis, we classified physical disability into three subtypes: upper limb disability, lower limb disability, and spinal cord injury. For a control group, we extracted people without disabilities by each subtype. To adjust for the participation rate in the NHI mass screening, we calculated and adopted the weight stratified by sex, age, and grade of disability. Differences in obesity rates between people with and without disabilities were examined by a chi-squared test. In addition, the effect of the existence of disabilities and grade of disabilities on obesity was examined by multiple logistic regression analysis. Results: People with disabilities were found to have a higher obesity rate than those without disabilities. The obesity rates were 35.2% and 35.0% (people with disabilities vs. without disabilities) in the upper limb disability, 44.5% and 34.8% in the lower limb disability, 43.4% and 34.6% in the spinal cord injury. The odds for existence of physical disability and grade of disability are higher than the nondisabilities. Conclusions: These results show that people with physical disability have a higher vulnerability to obesity.

• Korean Journal of Health Education and Promotion
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.35-48
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• 2010

Objectives: This study was to identify the food habits, dietary attitudes and exercise habits of senior elementary students and provide basic data for the development an obesity management program for these children. Methods: The survey participants were 626 fourth to sixth grade elementary students in G city. Data were analyzed by descriptive statistics, $\chi^2$-test, t-test, ANOVA and multiple logistic regression. Results: The prevalence of obesity was 9.1%. The score of food habits and dietary attitudes at normal-weight group was higher than that of obese group. The food habits of obese group were significantly different according to gender and consideration eating between meals too often as bad habits. The dietary attitudes were significantly different according to interest in obesity control and consideration eating fast and fat food preference as bad habits in obese group. The factors such as grade, intension in weight control and consideration eating fast, overeating, fat food preference and predilection for some food as bad habits were related to obesity. Conclusion: Food habits and dietary attitudes have relation with obesity of senior elementary students. Thus, to develop of obesity management program for senior elementary students, we considered the food habits and dietary attitudes of them.

• Korean Parent-Child Health Journal
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.25-36
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• 2008

The purpose of this study was to investigate the level of obesity and sexual knowledge between age-matched 168 postmenarcheal and 168 premenatcheal girls among 6th grade elementary school girls in Busan. Anthropometric measurements were taken for height and body weight of subjects for obesity and a questionnaire for sexual knowledge representing 5 categories was developed by researcher. For the statistical analysis of the collected data, frequency, Chi-square, t-test, ANOVA, and Pearson correlation were performed by SPSS WIN Vesion 12.0 program. These measurements of menarcheal grils were significantly higher than those of non-menacheal girls in height, body weight, BMI and obesity level. The sexual knowledge was low, expecially they didn't know well about sexual disease and contraception. There was no significant difference between two groups, but there was significant difference among obesity level, obesity group had sexual knowledge than others. And there were significant positive relations between the menarche and the obesity. The most important findings in the study showed that is needed the systemic and concrete sexual education in home, school and community, and especially by the professionals in the sex education field.

• The Korean Journal of Emergency Medical Services
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.53-67
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• 2008

Purpose : This study is descriptive correlation research to provide basic materials for developing program which can give practical assistance in preventing and managing obesity through more comprehensive approaches of influential factors on obesity found in existing literatures. Methods : Data were collected from the 4th, 5th and 6th graders at 2 elementary schools in Gwangju Metropolitan City and 4 elementary schools in Jeollanamdo province using questionnaire and students' physical examination results from June 15 to July 27, 2006 and data obtained from 1,866 students were used for analysis. Data collected were analyzed with technical statistics and correlation analysis using SPSS/PC(version 12.0). Results : 1. Obesity level of elementary school students was examined as follows; 33.2% had low weight, 44.3% normal, 10.8% overweight and 11.7% obese. 14.8% of boys and 8.6% of girls, 13.5% of the 4th graders, 12.1% of the 5th graders and 9.2% of the 6th graders, and 13.7% of urban students and 9.6% of rural students were obese. 2. According to general characteristics and obesity of the subjects, there were significant differences by sex(${\chi}^2=29.55$, p= .000), grade(${\chi}^2=12.84$, p= .046), region(${\chi}^2=41.96$, p= .000) and pocket money(${\chi}^2=33.43$, p= .001). 3. As genetic factors, all variables including sibling's obesity r= .128(p= .000), mother's obesity r= .098(p= .000) and father's obesity r= .081(p= .001) had influence on children's obesity. 4. Concerning environmental factors, there was positive correlation between eating habits r=- .052(p= .02) and school record r=- .048(p= .04) and there was negative correlation between internet using time r= .050(p= .03) and conflict with parents r= .048(p= .04). 5. Self-respect as psychological factor had negative correlation as r=- .048(p= .04). Conclusion : Consequently, the influential factors on obesity of elementary school students were as follows. Obesity was higher in boys than in girls, in urban areas than in rural areas, in lower grade than in higher grade, in children with obese siblings, obese father and mother, irregular and wrong eating habits, frequent internet uses, parents in conflict and lower school record and self-respect. Therefore, since it was found that these variables were more exact causes to increase children's obesity, development of various obesity mediation programs considering these variables at home, school and society is urgently required.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.44 no.3
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• pp.212-221
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• 2011

This study was conducted to identify differences in growth based on the obesity index in sixth grade. Heights and weights of 141 students from first to sixth grades were collected from school records. Other information was gathered by survey, and the weight length index (WLI) was calculated. Subjects were classified into three groups: underweight (n = 57, UG), normal (n = 53, NG), and obese (n = 31, OG) using the WLI. Differences in weight, height, and growth velocity were compared among the three groups from the first to sixth grades. With regard to growth, the past physical status of the three groups was maintained. More than 50% of the OG was in the overweight range when they were in the third to fifth grades. Approximately 60% of NG was in the normal weight range between the first and fifth grades. More than 70% of UG was in the underweight range when they were in the first to fifth grades (p < 0.001). Growth velocity was faster in OG than that in NG and UG (p < 0.001). The annual growth rate of children was the highest when they moved from the third to the fourth grade (p < 0.001). The results indicate that general balanced diet education should be implemented in lower grades, because physical growth formed in lower grades tended to be maintained in senior grades. It would be better to educate students about diet to prevent obesity before the fifth grade when a major change in body structure has occurred.

• Journal of the Korean Society of School Health
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.13-21
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• 2007

Purpose: The study was for researching the body image, self esteem and sociability of elementary students related on obesity. Methods: As the method, a convenience sample had been consisted of both 83 boys and 81 girls on 6th grade in elementary schools in Taebaek city. The data were collected through a self-report questionnaire between June 4th and June 8th, 2007. Then x2 test, One-way ANOVA, Scheff Test, and Pearson Correlation worked on the data using SPSS program. Results: On the result, 6th grade students have been perceived less on their overweight and obesity than the actual. On the research, 38.6% of the girls and 19.7% of the boys were actually obesity on their weight. However, 22.9% of the boys and 16.0% of the girls only has been recognized their obesity on the weight. Meantime 37.3% of the boys and 54.3% of the girl wanted to lose their weight. Body image has relatively a positive correlation by moderate level with self-esteem (r =.552. p<.01) and sociability(r=.509, p<.01) as well. Conclusion: As a conclusion of this study, health educators in elementary school need to lead for elementary students to improve their self-esteem and sociability through keeping normal weight. I would like to suggest that the educators need to develop a program for students to perceive the value of health and keep on normal weight.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.421-428
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• 2000

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.1 no.2
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• pp.126-130
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• 2007

Obesity is a worldwide epidemic problem. The downward trend of an obesity onset age calls for research efforts on how to develop useful nutrition educational programs for children to maintain adequate body weight. Understanding the roles of objective and subjective body status in obesity-related attitudes, knowledge, and behaviors can provide important information. The current study aimed to examine obesity-related attitudes and knowledge and practices of eating behavior guidelines in relation to obesity and body shape satisfaction among children. The gender effect in the relations was also investigated. A self-administered survey was conducted with 260 fifth grade children at 2 public elementary schools in the suburbs of Seoul. Information on demographics, body size, body satisfaction, obesity-related attitudes and knowledge, and eating behaviors was collected. Study findings from one-way analysis of variance tests indicated no differences in mean scores of the attitudes, knowledge, and eating behaviors across the levels of obesity for both gender. The levels of body shape satisfaction was, however, found to be significantly related with the attitudes and eating behaviors in girls, while no such relation was seen in boys. Girls with lower body shape dissatisfaction had significantly more negative attitudes toward obesity which was not translated into practice of healthy eating behaviors. That is, contrary to general expectation, the level of practicing the eating behavior guidelines was significantly lower in those girls. While underlying reasons for this observation is not fully answered, gender-specific, body satisfaction-stratified, and behavior-focused approach in designing obesity prevention programs for elementary school girls is suggested efficient and useful.