• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.72-75
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• 2002

Objectives : To evaluate the health hazards in the underground storage facilities of ginger roots. Methods : The authors reviewed the emergency rescue records from the Seosan fire department over the period Jan 1, 1996 to Aug 31, 1999. The atmospheres in 3 different underground storage locations were analyzed for $O_2,\;CO_2,\;CO,\;H_2S\;and\;NH_4$. Results : From the emergency records, we were able to identify 20 individuals that had been exposed to occupational hazards in the underground storage facilities. Among these 20 cases, 13 were due to asphyxiation (resulting in f deaths) and 7 were due to falls. In the first atmospheric tests, peformed on Feb 25, 1998, the O2 level inside the underground storage facility, located about $5{\sim}6$ meters below the surface, was 20.6% and the $CO_2$ level was about 1,000 ppm. CO, $H_2S\;and\;NH_4$ were not detected. In the second tests on Jul 6, 1999, measurements of the $O_2$ level at 3 meters below the surface in two different storage locations were 15.3 and 15.1%. And the $O_2$ levels inside the storage facilities were 12.2 and 12.1%. The $CO_2$ level was above 5,000 ppm (beyond upper limits of measurement). CO, $H_2S\;and\;NH_4$ were not detected. Conclusions : We conclude that asphyxiation in the underground storage facilities for ginger roots was not due to the presence of toxic gases such as CO, $H_2S\;and\;NH_4$, but rather the exclusion of oxygen by carbon dioxide was responsible for causing casualties. For the development of a hazard free working environment, safety education as well as improvements in storage methods are needed.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.39 no.2
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• pp.122-129
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• 2020

BACKGROUND: Dissipation patterns of insecticides (acequinocyl, clothianidin, diflubenzuron, thiacloprid, and thiamethoxam) on strawberry grown in plastic-covered greenhouse were evaluated at 7 intervals including the preharvest interval after application. This study was performed to determine the residue concentrations, half-lives and dissipation rates in strawberry for the harvest periods. METHODS AND RESULTS: Acequinocyl, clothianidin, diflubenzuron, thiacloprid, and thiamethoxam were applied in accordance with critical good agricultural practices for strawberry. Strawberry samples were collected at 0, 1, 2, 3, 5, 7 and 10 days after application. Quantitaion was performed by HPLC/DAD and HPLC-MSMS system with C₁₈ column. The limit of quantitation (LOQ) values varied between were 0.00025~0.05 mg/kg on strawberry. The recoveries of acequinocyl, clothianidin, diflubenzuron, thiacloprid and thiamethoxam at two concentrations ranged from 70.9~104.9% on strawberry. The half-lives of pesticide dissipation on strawberry for two fields ranged from 1.3~8.2 days. The dissipation rates were evaluated according to the statistics method with a 95% confidence. CONCLUSION: The residue levels of insecticides (acequinocyl, clothianidin, diflubenzuron, thiacloprid, and thiamethoxam) on strawberry at 0-day after application were below the specified values by Korean MRL. To estimate dissipation rate constant of pesticides on crop for harvest periods, it is important to set the pre-harvest residue limit for human health and consumer protection in Korea.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.124-130
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• 2018

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) is amending its test methods for the use of health functional foods (dietary food supplement), in order to establish regulatory standards and specifications in Korea. In this regard, we continue to pursue and perform our research on the analytical method development for the items being researched and reviewed. In this study, we have developed a sensitive and selective test method that could simultaneously separate and determinate six major bioactive flavonolignans in silymarin, which are based on the use of a liquid chromatographic-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). The standard calibration curves presented a linearity effect with the correlation coefficient ($r^2$) > 0.999. The limits of detection (LODs) and limits of quantitation (LOQs) were in the range of $0.3{\sim}9.0{\mu}g/L$ and $0.8{\sim}27.3{\mu}g/L$, respectively. The recovery results ranged between 96.2~98.6% at 3 different concentration levels, and its relative standard deviations (RSDs) were less than 5% as noted in this study. The proposed analytical method was characterized with a noted high resolution of the individual silymarin constituents, and the assay was fully validated as well. Our research can provide a significant scientific evidence that can be useful to amend the silymarin test method for the Health Functional Food Code.

• The Korean Journal of Community Living Science
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.311-322
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• 2010

The purpose of this study was to examine food hygiene knowledge and health practice levels of elementary school students at foodservice in the Suwon area. Of the 500 upper graders from three elementary schools, 486 students (97.2%) participated in the study. The questionnaire was composed of general characteristics including experience of serving food at school, food hygiene knowledge (25 questions), and health practice (18 questions). The results were as follows: The education experiences of food hygiene were below 40% though most students (88.1%) participated in providing food at foodservice. The percentage of correct answers in food hygiene knowledge was over 70% in most questions, but relatively lower in food preservation temperature (44.7%) and food poisoning bacteria (43.2%). When we examined food hygiene behavior of elementary school students in 5scales, the level of personal hygiene management was 4.04, sanitary management in food product was 3.62, environmental hygiene was 3.92, and foodborn disease and food microorganism was 3.81. Each level in each subarea was significantly related in the frequency of hygiene education experiences. Finally, the food hygiene knowledge was positively correlated with its behavior level in elementary school foodservice. These results suggested that the knowledge of food hygiene may affect its behavior, and therefore, regular education of food hygiene at home and school would be needed to improve food safety in foodservice.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.199-206
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• 2016

Pesticides are widely used to prevent loss of agricultural production but extensive exposure can induce health problems to pesticide operators. This study was performed to evaluate the health risk of highly produced pesticides used in fruit growing farm land by comparison of estimated exposure level with AOEL using KO-POEM program. AOEL was driven based on NOAEL of each pesticide evaluated by JMPR, EFSA or KRDA. In calculation of exposure level, types of formulation, dilution factors, spraying duration and motor type and exposure protection device were allocated according to actual condition of use. Dermal absorption rate was differently applied among EFSA default values (25% or 75%), general default value (10%) or real test result values to know the plausibility of default values and safety of pesticide to operators in outline. Twenty pesticide ingredients (fungicides and insecticides) were produced more than 30 tons per year, which were mancozeb, chlorothalonil, imidaclopirid and etc in order. Dermal absorption rates obtained from studies were various from 0.07 to 81% but mostly under 10%. The estimated exposure levels showed big differences more than 10 times higher when using EFSA default rate and up to 5 times higher when using general rate of 10% comparing using rates of test results. Mancozeb, chlorthalonil, diazinon and chlorpyrifos presented still higher exposure level than AOEL even when using test absorption rate from study, which suggests that re-evaluation of AOEL or dermal exposure absorption rate or strict management are required for health protection of operators who use those four pesticides in farm land.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.27-34
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• 2013

Objectives: The purpose of this study is to calculate the worker-DNEL (Derived No Effect Level) values using the REACH guidance and compare the calculated DNELs with existing Korea occupational exposure limits (KOELs) for evaluation of the applicability of the worker-DNELs as provisional occupational exposure limits for chemicals that are not established KOELs in the workplace. Methods: The worker-DNELs for 46 chemicals among 113 hazardous substance requiring management were calculated using the REACH guidance, and a paired t-test was performed to see if there is any statistical difference between two lists (worker-DNELs vs KOELs). The ratios of KOELs over worker-DNELs were also calculated to compare the overall levels of two lists using the geometric means method. Results: The calculated worker-DNELs for 46 chemicals ranged from 0.001 to $329mg/m^3$ (GM= 6.9, GSD = 10.8), and appeared to be a significant difference between the worker-DNELs and the KOELs (p < 0.01). In addition, the ratios of KOELs over worker-DNELs ranged from 0.3 to 394 times (GM = 10.2, GSD = 3.9), indicating that the worker-DNELs were, on average, 27 times lower than the KOELs. Conclusions: Therefore, the study results show that the calculated worker-DNELs can be applied and used as provisional occupational exposure limits in the workplace in order to reduce worker exposures to chemicals and health risks, and manage potential worker exposures based on the precautionary principle through comprehensive chemical risk assessment.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.87-95
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• 2012

This study was investigated to determine the contamination levels of total aerobic bacteria, coliform group, $E.$ $coli$ and food-borne pathogens of side dishes from 2 traditional markets (100 samples) and 2 super markets (100 samples) located on Ulsan. The levels (range) of total aerobic bacteria was 4.75 log CFU/g (1.60~6.92 log CFU/g) in traditional market and 4.62 log CFU/g (2.00~6.46 log CFU/g) in super market, respectively. Coliform was detected in 64 and 66 samples sold at traditional markets and super markets, respectively. $E.$ $coli$ was detected in 4 and 6 samples sold at traditional markets and super markets, respectively. The food-borne pathogens, namely $Bacillus$ $cereus$ and $Listeria$ $monocytogenes$ were detected in 1 sample sold at traditional markets, respectively, and $Bacillus$ $cereus$ was detected in 4 samples sold at super markets. However, other pathogens such as $Salmonella$ spp., $Shigella$ spp., $Vibrio$ $parahaemolyticus$, $Yersinia$ $enterocolitica$, $Clostridium$ $perfringens$, $Camphylobacter$ $jejuni$ and Pathogenic $E.$ $coli$ were not detected. The $Saengchae$ and $Seasoned$ $Jeotgal$ were relatively vulnerable compared to the others in the food-borne pathogens.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.154-159
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• 2011

Inadequate food handling and poor hand hygiene playa major role in the occurrence of foodborne diseases. The objective of this study was to find out if the level of microbial contamination on the hands of food preparers varies by time during their working period. This study focused on the contamination of aerobic plate count, total and fecal coliforms, Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Salmonella spp. Sampling from left hand and right hand of twenty food preparers was done with glove-juice method at every two hours during their work. Microbiological testing was conducted according to the Food Code of Korea. The microbiological load on the hands was changed over time. Samples taken from their hands before work and at 8 hours showed higher levels of bacteria than those taken at 2, 4, and 6 hours during work and/or after work (p < 0.05). The contamination levels of microorganisms were consistently higher in right hand than in left hand. Poor hand hygiene practices were indicated by the positive results for total and fecal coli forms, E. coli, S. aureus, and Salmonella spp. on the hands of some food preparers. This study indicates food preparers' hands can be a vehicle of pathogen during their work. The results of this study emphasize the importance of hand hygiene education and training targeting the food preparers.

• Analytical Science and Technology
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.212-220
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• 2015

This study aims to identify the characteristics of phthalates (DMP, DEP, DBP, DEHA, BBP, DEHP, and DNOP) and heavy metals such as lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), and mercury (Hg) in cosmetics and their containers. Phthalates and heavy metals may be endocrine distruptors. Sixty-five cosmetics were purchased from online and offline stores in Busan. This study developed a simultaneous method for the analysis of phthalates by GC-FID. The results showed that among the 65 cosmetics, DBP, DEHP, and DEP were detected at 20.0%, 7.7%, 1.5%, respectively. The amounts of DBP and DEHP detected in 18 samples were less than 100 μg/g, which satisfies the Regulations of Cosmetic Safety Standards in Korea. In order to detect phthalates in cosmetic containers, a dissolution test was conducted by extracting solutions, such as water, n-heptane, 20% ethanol, 50% ethanol and 4% acetic acid, which were prepared with different levels of pH, alcohol content, and fat content following the Korea Standards and Specifications for Utensils, Containers, and Packaging. The results showed that DMP, DBP, DEHA, BBP, DEHP, and DNOP were not detected, DEP was detected in plastics such as PE, PP, and others, when a 50% alcohol solvent was used. Phthalates may not be detected in cosmetic containers if they are not packaged with the above 20% alcohol constituent. We also analyzed the concentration of heavy metals, such as Pb, Cd, and Hg, by using ICP-OES and a mercury analyzer. The ranges of concentration were ND~2.71 μg/g for Pb, ND~0.31 μg/g for Cd, and ND~0.01 μg/g for Hg, which are below the regulated level.

• The Korean Journal of Community Living Science
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.437-449
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• 2016

To provide information on the safety of crude antifungal compounds produced by Bacillus subtilus SN7 isolated from Meju, we carried out an acute (single) oral dose toxicity test and 4 week repeated oral dose determination test on crude antifungal compounds in male and female Sprague Dawley rats. In the acute toxicity test, rats were treated with crude antifungal compounds produced by Bacillus subtilus SN7 orally at increasing dose levels (500, 1,000, and 2,000 mg/kg) and observed for 2 weeks. In the repeated-dose 28-day oral dose determination study, rats were orally administered doses of 500, 1,000, and 2,000 mg/kg daily for 4 weeks. There were no test article-related deaths or abnormal clinical signs in the two studies. In the 4 week repeated oral dose determination test, there were also no significant differences in clinical signs, body and organ weight changes, or any other hematological and biochemical parameters between the control and treated groups. The results suggest that the crude antifungal compounds produced by Bacillus subtilus SN7 up to a dosage level of 2,000 mg/kg are not toxic in male and female rats.