• Journal of the East Asian Society of Dietary Life
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.691-702
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• 2015

This study examined the levels of risk perception of food risk elements by adopting a psychometric paradigm and analyzed factors affecting concerns about food risk elements to obtain basic materials for food safety policy. The data were collected from 296 housewives in Daegu, Korea, by a self-administered questionnaire. Frequency distributions, Pearson's correlation coefficient analysis, factor analysis, Cronbach's ${alpha}$, and multiple regression analyses were conducted by SPSS 21.0. The mean level of concern for food safety was 3.75/5.00 points, and the mean percentage of correct answers about heavy metal contamination was highest among food risk elements. The respondents perceived radioactive contaminated foods, GM foods, and endocrine disruptors as a new, delayed, scientifically unknown, involuntary, serious, and uncontrollable risk in risk perception. According to the result of factor analysis for risk perception, two factors such as non-controllability and dread were categorized. In the risk perception map, radioactive contaminated foods and GM foods were considered as an uncontrollable and dreaded risk, heavy metal contamination, endocrine disruptors, and pesticide residues as a controllable and dreaded risk, and foodborne illness and food additives as a controllable and less dreaded risk. On the other hand, the levels of concerns about food risk elements were higher in order of radioactive contaminated foods, GM foods, and endocrine disruptors. The results of multiple regression analysis showed that age, concern for food safety, percentage of correct answers about food risk elements, non-controllability, and dread influenced the concerns about food risk elements. These results imply that food safety policies should consider differences in consumer's risk perception of food risk elements.

• Journal of the East Asian Society of Dietary Life
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.450-458
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• 2017

The purpose of this study was to investigate the levels of risk perception characteristics for food risk elements using a psychometric paradigm from 298 university students in Yeungnam region, Korea, by a self-administered questionnaire. The respondents showed the highest level of risk concern about radioactive contaminated foods and the lowest level about GM (genetically modified) foods. In the risk perception characteristics for food risk elements, they perceived radioactive contaminated foods as a catastrophic, worried, new, and uncontrollable risk. In addition, they regarded food additives and foodborne illness as a chronic, controllable, old, and scientifically and individually known risk. According to the results of the factor analysis for risk perception characteristics, dread and unknown were categorized. In the risk perception map, mad cow disease, heavy metal contaminated foods, and radioactive contaminated foods were considered as a dreaded and unknown risk, whereas pesticide residues and GM foods were perceived as a less dreaded and unknown risk. Additionally, food additives and foodborne illness were regarded as a less dreaded and known risk and endocrine disruptors and avian influenza as a dreaded and known risk. These results imply that risk perception characteristics of consumers should be considered to establish strategies for risk communication in food science.

• Journal of the East Asian Society of Dietary Life
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.116-129
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• 2009

The study was conducted to evaluate consumer awareness of the risk elements associated with foods and their information search behavior regarding food safety. The data were collected from 504 adult consumers living in Seoul, Busan, Incheon, Daegu, Daejeon, and Gwangju through a self-administered questionnaire on August, 2006. Frequency analyses, t tests, one-way analysis of variance, and Duncan's multiple range comparison tests were conducted to analyze the responses using SPSS v. 14.0. The levels of recognition of consumers regarding each risk element were generally low. Many respondents answered that they obtained information regarding food safety from TV/radio/newspapers and family/relatives/friends/neighbors. The respondents also indicated that they had strong confidence in the information from family/relatives/friends/neighbors. Additionally, most respondents required information regarding heavy metal contamination, endoctrine disruptors, and avian influenza.

• Toxicological Research
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.221-226
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• 2015

With the diversification and internationalization of the food industry and the increased focus on health from a majority of consumers, food safety policies are being implemented based on scientific evidence. Risk analysis represents the most useful scientific approach for making food safety decisions. Total diet study (TDS) is often used as a risk assessment tool to evaluate exposure to hazardous elements. Many countries perform TDSs to screen for chemicals in foods and analyze exposure trends to hazardous elements. TDSs differ from traditional food monitoring in two major aspects: chemicals are analyzed in food in the form in which it will be consumed and it is cost-effective in analyzing composite samples after processing multiple ingredients together. In Korea, TDSs have been conducted to estimate dietary intakes of heavy metals, pesticides, mycotoxins, persistent organic pollutants, and processing contaminants. TDSs need to be carried out periodically to ensure food safety.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Culture
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.421-426
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• 2008

The purpose of this study was to measure the effects of trust, knowledge, optimism, risk and benefits on consumer attitudes toward genetically modified foods. A total of 326 questionnaires were completed. Moderated regression analysis was used to measure the relationships among the variables. The analysis results for the data indicated a good model fit in Model 2 rather than Model 1, in which the direct effects of trust, optimism and benefits had statistically significant direct effects on the respondents' attitudes toward genetically modified foods, while the direct effects of knowledge and risk were not statistically significant. As expected, the interaction term of risk and benefit had a significant effect on consumer attitude. Moreover, the effect of risk on consumer's attitude toward genetically modified foods was statistically significant at all levels of benefit, except at the lower benefit level. Finally, the results of this study indicated that genetically modified food developers and marketers should attach importance to the interaction effect of benefits to understand the elements of market demand and customer loyalty.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.39 no.1
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• pp.28-34
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• 2006

This study was performed to compare nutrients intake and levels of three elements (iron, copper and zinc) in the plasma of breast cancer patients to those in healthy controls. Patients (n = 97) and their age-matched healthy control groups (n = 97) participated in the study. A semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire specifically formulated to evaluate the consumption of nutrients was used to estimate dietary intake. Only plasma was taken from the 20 patients and their age-matched healthy control group. Plasma concentrations of iron, copper, zinc, ratio of Cu/Zn were measured in both groups. Results showed that patients consumed significantly lower protein, fat, iron. Plasma level of copper and ratio of Cu/Zn were significantly higher in patients compared to those of controls. In conclusion, change of trace elements in plasma might be useful and significant as biomakers involving the initial process. And these results imply that trace elements status is a factor related to breast cancer risk and suggest that proper intake of those nutrients is required for cancer prevention.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.23 no.5
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• pp.37-44
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• 2018

Soil trace elements and their bioaccumulation in agricultural products have attracted widespread concerns, yet the crop uptake characteristics of trace elements in different soil-plants systems have been rarely investigated. Experiments were carried out to investigate the effect of soil properties on trace element concentrations in cabbage and radish. Soil pH and total organic matter were major factors influencing trace elements transfer from soil to vegetables. Inclusion of other soil properties in the stepwise regression analysis improved the regression models for predicting trace element concentrations. Consideration of other soil properties should be taken into account for more precise prediction of trace element concentrations in the two vegetables, which could help quantitatively evaluate the ecologic risk of toxic trace elements accumulation in crops.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.49 no.1
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• pp.7-12
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• 2016

Total mercury (TM) is a hazardous element that is of particular concern to human health. Due to the diversity of dietary habits among fishes, tissue-specific analysis of hazardous elements is necessary. In this study, the tissue-specific TM in cultured fish was analyzed to conduct risk assessment. The highest concentrations of TM were found in the farmed marine fish Pagrus major (0.111 mg/kg) and in the farmed freshwater fish Channa argus (0.162 mg/kg). TM concentration was significantly correlated with total fish length (P<0.01). Significant differences in TM were found between three types of fish tissue, with the concentration in fish muscle being significantly higher than those of gill or liver (P<0.01). Moreover, the tissue-specific TM concentrations of farmed freshwater fish were significantly higher than those of farmed marine fish (P<0.01). According to the risk assessment, the TM body exposure rate of muscle and liver in cultured fishes ranged from 0.001 to 0.389% of the Provisional Tolerable Weekly Intake. Therefore, these results showing the tissue-specific TM contents of cultured fish could be useful to assess the health risks of Korean dietary habits.

• 대한예방의학회:학술대회논문집
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• 1994.02a
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• pp.23-56
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• 1994

Recent criticisms of the conduct and use of risk assessment by regulatory agencies have led to a wide range of proposed remedies, including changes in regulatory statutes and the development of new methods for assessing risk. The mandate to this Committee was more limited. Our objective was to examine whether alterations in institutional arrangements or procedures, particularly the organizational separation of risk assessment from regulatory decision-making and the use of uniform guidelines for inferring risk from available scientific information, can improve federal risk assessment activities. Before undertaking to determine whether organizational and procedural reforms could improve the performance and use of risk assessment in the federal government, the Committee examined the state of risk assessment and the regulatory environment in which it is performed. In this chapter, we define risk assessment and differentiate it from other elements in the regulatory process, analyze the types of judgments made in risk assessment, and examine its current government context. Because one chronic health hazard, cancer, was highlighted in the Committee's congressional mandate and has dominated public concern about public health risks in recent years, most of our report focuses on it. Furthermore, because activities in four agencies--the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), and the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)--have given rise to many of the proposals for changes in risk assessment practices, our review focuses on these four agencies. The conclusions of this report, although directed primarily at risk assessment of potential carcinogens as performed by these four agencies, may be applicable to other federal programs to reduce health risks.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.240-253
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• 1997

The main problems contributing to food poisoning outbreaks in institutional settings and a home were reviewed and analyzed through the epidemiological investigations of food poisoning. The major documented factors included improper holding temperatures, inadequate cooking, poor personal hygiene, cross-contamination and contaminated equipment, food from unsafe sources, failure to follow food hygiene policies, and lack of education, training, monitoring and superivision. Usually more than one factor contributed to the development of an outbreak. (1) Use of improper holding temperatures was the single most important factor contributing to food poisoning. They included improper cooling, allowing a laps of time (12 hours or more) between preparing food and eating it, improper hot holding, and inadequate or improper thawing. Food thermometers were not used in most of the instances. (2) In inadequate cooking, the core temperature of food during and after cooking had not been measured, and routine monitoring was limited to recording the temperature of plated meals. Compared with conventional methods of cooking, microwave ovens did not protect against food poisoning as effectively. Centralized food preparation potentially increased the risk of food poisoning outbreaks. (3) Poor personal hygiene both at the individual level (improper handwashing and lack of proper hygienic practices) and at the institutional level (poor general sanitization) increased the risk of transmission. Person to person transmission of enteric pathogens through direct contact and via fomites has been noted in several instances. (4) Obtaining food from unsafe sources was a risk factor in outbreaks of food poisoning. Food risks were high when food was grown or harvested from contaminated areas. Possibilities included contamination in the field, in transport, at the retail site, or at the time it was prepared for serving. (5) Cross-contamination and inadequate cleaning/handling of equipment became potential vehicles of food poisoning. Failure to separate cooked food from raw food was also a risk factor. (6) Failure to follow food hygiene policies also provided opportunities for outbreaks of food poisoning. It included improper hygienic practices during food preparation, neglect of personnel policies (involvement of symptomatic workers in food preparation), poor results on routine inspections, and disregarding the results and recommendations of an inspection. (7) Lack of formal and in-service education, training, monitoring, and supervision of food handlers or supervisors were critical and perhaps neglected elements in occurrences of food poisoning.