• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.5 no.3
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• pp.224-229
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• 2011

The prevalence of atopic dermatitis (AD) in school-age children has increased in industrialized countries. As diet is one of the main factors provoking AD, some studies have suggested that food additives in processed foods could function as pseudoallergens, which comprise the non-immunoglobulin E-mediated reaction. Eosinophil cationic protein (ECP) is an eosinophil granule protein released during allergic reactions to food allergens in patients with AD. Thus, serum ECP levels may be a useful indicator of ongoing inflammatory processes in patients with AD. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of consuming MSG in processed foods on serum ECP levels among children with AD. This study was performed with 13 patients with AD (age, 7-11 years) who had a normal range of total IgE levels (< 300 IU/ml). All participants ate normal diets during the first week. Then, six patients were allocated to a processed food-restricted group (PRDG) and seven patients were in a general diet group (GDG). During the second week, children in the PRDG and their parents were asked to avoid eating all processed foods. On the third week, children in the PRDG were allowed all foods, as were the children in the GDG throughout the 3-week period. The subjects were asked to complete a dietary record during the trial period. Children with AD who received the dietary restriction showed decreased consumption of MSG and decreased serum ECP levels and an improved SCORing score on the atopic dermatitis index (P < 0.05). No differences in serum ECP levels or MSG consumption were observed in the GDG. Serum total IgE levels were not changed in either group. In conclusion, a reduction in MSG intake by restricting processed food consumption may lead to a decrease in serum ECP levels in children with AD and improve AD symptoms.

• Preventive Nutrition and Food Science
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.254-260
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• 2012

This study surveyed dietary intake and adherence to the Korean national dietary guidelines in Korean adolescents. To elucidate basic data for use in nutrition education, which aims to improve adolescent compliance with the national dietary guidelines and to increase the intake of dietary fiber, we evaluated the sources of fiber in adolescent diets. This study included 182 male and 212 female students from 2 middle schools in the Jeonju province. From November 15~20, 2011, we surveyed the students for general characteristics, adherence to the Korean national dietary guidelines, and dietary intake. Dietary fiber intake was $16.57{\pm}6.95$ g/day for male students and $16.14{\pm}7.11$ g/day for female students. The food groups that contributed most to dietary fiber intake were (in descending order) cereals, vegetables, seasoning, and fruits. The fiber-containing food items consumed most were cabbagekimchi, cooked rice, instant noodles, and cabbage. Based on adherence to the Korean national dietary guidelines, the vegetable-based intake of dietary fiber in groups 1 (score 15~45), 2 (score 46~52), and 3 (score 53~75) were $4.41{\pm}2.595$ g/day, $4.12{\pm}2.692$ g/day, and $5.49{\pm}3.157$ g/day, respectively (p 0.001). In addition, the total intake of dietary fiber varied significantly among the three groups (p 0.001) as follows: Group 1, $14.99{\pm}6.374$ g/day; Group 2, $15.32{\pm}6.772$ g/day; and Group 3, $18.79{\pm}7.361$ g/day. In this study, we discovered that adherence to the Korean national dietary guidelines correlates with improved intake of dietary fiber. Therefore, marketing and educational development is needed to promote adherence to the Korean national dietary guidelines. In addition, nutritional education is needed to improve dietary fiber consumption through the intake of vegetables and fruits other than kimchi.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.13 no.5
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• pp.620-629
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• 2008

The purpose of this study was to assess dietary habits and seasonal variation and diversity of food intakes of elderly women living alone as compared to those of elderly women living with family in a rural area. Forty nine elderly women living alone and forty one elderly women living with family who reside in Goryeong-gun, Gyeongbuk, were interviewed using questionnaires in summer 2005, and their food intakes were assessed secondly in winter and thirdly in spring 2006. The average ages were 74.7 years for elderly living alone and 72.8 years for elderly living with family. Tooth status and bone fracture experience were similar between the groups. The prevalence of musculoskeletal disease was 61.2% and that of circulatory disease was 32.7% of the subjects. Average of total score of mental depression of the subjects was 5.94 out of 12 points, and it was not significantly different between the two groups. Skipping meals was more frequent and mealtime was more irregular in the elderly women living alone as compared with the elderly women living with family. Consumption of dietary supplements was also less in the elderly women living alone. Food intakes by the elderly women living alone tended to be lower than those by the elderly women living with family. Dietary diversity score was significantly lower with the elderly women living alone as compared with the elderly women living with family only in summer (p < 0.01). Percentages of the subjects who have taken meat group and vegetable group were significantly lower in the elderly living alone compared with the elderly living with family during summer. Therefore, it is necessary to develop food assistance or supporting program suited for the season within a community for elderly women living alone.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.8 no.6
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• pp.889-900
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• 2003

This study was carried out to obtain information regarding eating habits, including health related behavior and health food consumption patterns. The subjects of this study were 149 men and 152 women residing in the Ulsan area. We obtained results by means of a questionnaire and an interview, and these were analyzed using the SPSS package program. The results of this study are summarized as follows The average age of the men was 47.6 $\pm$ 7.3 years and of the women was 47.3 $\pm$ 7.6 years old. The average height and weight of the men were 169.4 $\pm$ 5.5 cm and 67.7 $\pm$ 8.2 kg, respectively. Those of the women were 157.6 $\pm$ 5.0 cm and 58.2 $\pm$ 7.5 kg, respectively. The BMI values of all the subjects ranged from 20.0 to 25.0, all within the normal levels. In the case of dietary patterns, 24.3% of the total population always skipped a meal. In particular, 15.9% of the total population skipped breakfast. No time to eat, no appetite, having no taste, and having poor health were themain reasons for skipping meals. With regard to health care, there was a significant difference between the men and the women with respect to smoking and drinking (p<0.001). Of the total population, 40.5% hardly exercised (less than once a week), 26.2% exercised occasionally, 13.6% frequently exercised, and 19.6% exercised almost every day. A total of 60.7% responded that they were not interested in their health. The mean eating habit score of the subjects was 65.6 $\pm$ 9.9. The women had a higher eating habit score than the men (64.0 $\pm$ 9.6 for the men and 67.2 $\pm$ 9.9 for the women). Except for one group above 60 years, the older group had a higher eating habit score than the younger one. The group having a higher income and a more specialized career had a higher eating habit score than the one having a lower income and a less specialized career. There was also a marital difference. The group of single subjects showed a lower eating habit score than the married group. The group having a higher eating habit score drank, smoked and went out for meals less, and exercised more than the group having lower scores. They also were more concerned about their health. In the older group, there were more diabetic and hypertensive individuals. The subjects who had a higher BMI index were more likely to be patients with hypertension, especially in the men's group. Those who had a higher BMI index and hypertension simultaneously took a variety of medicines and foods for promoting health. Those who worried a lot about their health and had health problems tended to take special foods for their health. Patients usually took tonics. Special foods for health included Chinese medicines, tonic foods, vitamin or mineral supplements and manufactured health food supplements. Preferences for them depended on the sex and age of the subject. In the case of tonic foods, the men liked them more than the women. Foods other than tonic foods were favorites with the women. This study may provide basic information on the eating habits and health related behaviors of middle-aged people. However, further studies are needed to improve the eating habits and to change the nutritional attitudes, so that people can make better choices of health foods.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.257-268
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• 2024

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: This study investigated the relationship between adherence to the Mediterranean diet among Korean baby boomers and their levels of psychosocial stress. SUBJECTS/METHODS: The study included 1,656 adults (889 men and 797 women) born between 1955 and 1963 who participated in the 2005-2006 survey of the community-based Korean Genome and Epidemiology Study (KoGES). The Mediterranean-type diet score (MTDS) was calculated from the semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire (SQFFQ) data. The psychosocial stress levels were calculated using the psychosocial well-being indexshort form (PWI-SF). Logistic regression analyses were performed to analyze the association between the MTDS (tertiles) and the prevalence of high psychosocial stress by gender. RESULTS: The ranges of the MTDS tertile groups were T1 (20-33 points), T2 (34-37 points), and T3 (38-39 points) for men, T1 (20-33 points), T2 (34-37 points), and T3 (38-48 points) for women. In both men and women, the consumption of whole grains, potatoes, fruits, vegetables, legumes, and fish increased with higher MTDS, while the consumption of red meat and dairy products decreased (P for trend < 0.05). As MTDS score increased the intake of energy, fiber, vitamins, and minerals (P for trend < 0.05). Men in the highest MTDS tertile had a 41% lower odds ratio (OR) of high psychosocial stress compared with those in the lowest tertile (OR, 0.59; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.38-0.91). Similarly, women in the highest tertile of the MTDS had a 39% lower OR of high psychosocial stress compared with those in the lowest tertile (OR, 0.61; 95% CI, 0.40-0.95). CONCLUSION: Promoting adherence to the Mediterranean diet among baby boomers may have a positive impact on reducing their levels of psychosocial stress.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Culture
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.149-155
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• 1992

This study was carried out to find out the effect of dietary intake on cognitive function retardation in old age using dietary survey and cognitive function test. The subjects were 332 men of 50-94 years old and their activities of daily living were very similar. The cognitive function was tested by Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE)-K which was translated from MMSE, and the 24-hour recall method was used for dietary survey. Scoring of MMSE-K was a little different from MMSE, that is, in case of no education, one to four points were added to exclude the effect of education which has been considered as a confounder by many researchers. The number of subjects belonging to below 23 of MMSE-K score was increased by increasing age. Even though points were added in case of no education, the ratio of below 23 MMSE-K score group was diminished by increasing education. Therefore, education seems not to be a confounder but a independent variable on cognitive function. Income, past occupation, family type, self-evaluated health status did not play any effect on cognitive function significantly. On the other hand, the correlation between each nutrients and the score of cognitive function test showed that the more consumption of vitamin A and protein, the higher cognitive function score was obtained. In case of iron and Ca, even though it was not statistically significant, there was a tendency of increasing cognitive function score by increasing the intake of those nutrients. This study suggests that micronutrient intakes might be more related to cognitive function than macronutrients.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.228-237
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• 2017

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate the smoking status among adult workers, and current status of sugar intake. Methods: The survey included 500 men working in Gyeonggi-do from October to November in 2016. Questionnaire items covered their age, working status, smoking status, eating habits, eating behaviors, snack consumption status, habits and behaviors related to sugar intake. All data were analyzed by SPSS program (Ver. 23) and descriptive statistics was performed; a t-test, ${\chi}^2$ test, One-way ANOVA and Scheffe test were used for post-hoc test. Results: The study results showed that eating habits and behaviors of non-smokers were better than those of smokers. The frequency of daily snack consumption was the highest in smokers compared to and non-smokers. The smokers' favorite taste after smoking was 'Sweet'. The average score of sugar-related nutrition knowledge was higher in non-smokers compared to smokers. Non-smokers had better recognition of 'sugar reduction', and smokers were more likely to eat sweet foods, respectively. On the other hand, non-smokers could observe that they were trying to control themselves for health reasons. According to the results of the study, non-smokers showed better eating habits and dietary habits and consumed less sugar. Also, it was found that non-smokers tried to drink more water than beverages and refrain from eating sweets to reduce their sugar intake. Further, the most of the bread, coffee and beverages were also consumed at a lower frequency by non-smokers compared to smokers. Conclusions: This study results showed that smoking and sugar consumption were closely related. Therefore, adult workers should actively promote and learn so that they can maintain healthy and suitable dietary habits through reduction of sugar consumption.

• The Journal of Bigdata
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.83-89
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• 2021

Lifestyle is changing rapidly, and food consumption patterns vary widely among households as dietary and food processing technologies evolve. This paper reclassified the food group of consumer panel data established by the Rural Development Administration, which contains information on purchasing agricultural products by household unit, and compared the consumption characteristics of agricultural products by age group. The criteria for age classification were divided into groups in their 60s and older with a prevalence of 20% or more metabolic diseases and groups in their 30s and 40s with less than 10%. Using the LightGBM algorithm, we classified the differences in food consumption patterns in their 30s and 50s and 60s and found that the precision was 0.85, the reproducibility was 0.71, and F1_score was 0.77. The results of variable importance were confectionery, folio, seasoned vegetables, fruit vegetables, and marine products, followed by the top five values of the SHAP indicator: confectionery, marine products, seasoned vegetables, fruit vegetables, and folio vegetables. As a result of binary classification of consumption patterns as a median instead of the average sensitive to outliers, confectionery showed that those in their 30s and 40s were more than twice as high as those in their 60s. Other variables also showed significant differences between those in their 30s and 40s and those in their 60s and older. According to the study, people in their 30s and 40s consumed more than twice as much confectionery as those in their 60s, while those in their 60s consumed more than twice as much marine products, seasoned vegetables, fruit vegetables, and folioce or logistics as much as those in their 30s and 40s. In addition to the top five items, consumption of 30s and 40s in wheat-processed snacks, breads and noodles was high, which differed from food consumption patterns in their 60s.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Culture
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• v.29 no.6
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• pp.519-527
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• 2014

This study was conducted to analyze the differences in consumer behavior of coffee product according to monthly income in franchised coffee shop's consumer in Korea. A total of 293 questionnaires were used out of the 330 that had been distributed for analysis; those that lacked reliability were excluded. Frequency, ANOVA, and Duncan's multiple range test was conducted to analyze the hypotheses of the study. The findings are summarized as follows. There were significant differences in consumer behavior with regard to seeking health, eco-friendly products, product brand, and product taste as well as preferred coffee menu and coffee consumption expenditures. High income consumers rather than low income groups showed much higher score for concerning health, concerning diet, concerning calorie, concerning instant, concerning caffeine and concerning nature, organic in coffee consumer behavior. In amount spent on purchasing coffee products according to income, low income consumers rather than high income groups had much higher financial expense burden.

• Journal of the East Asian Society of Dietary Life
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.142-152
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• 2000

This study was conducted to investigate the life style and dietary factors in high-risk of vascular diseases among workers residing in Kyungbook province. The survey was carried out on March and April, 1997 The subjects of this study consisted of fifty men aged over 30 years who were diagnosed as hypercholesterolemia(＞240mg/$m\ell$) or hypertension(＞160/95mmHg). In contrast, fifty healthy men were participated in this study as a control group. General environmental factors, nutrition knowledge and food behavior were investigated by questionaires through direct interviews with the subjects. Alcohol intake and smoking level of the subjects tended to be higher than those of the control, but not significantly different. Nutrition knowledge and food behavior scores of high-risk group were significantly lower than those of the control group. The smoking amount of subjects was negatively correlated with blood glucose and BMI. Alcohol consumption of subjects appeared to have a positive correlation with systolic blood pressure and BMI. The relationship of food behavior score with BMI and blood glucose were negatively correlated. Nutrition knowledge score showed a negative correlation with total cholesterol, blood glucose level, BMI and systolic blood pressure. These results suggest that efficient nutrition education programs need to be developed to prevent the cardiovascular diseases of workers.