• Journal of Korean Home Economics Education Association
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.79-88
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• 2016

The purpose of this study was to distinguish which food is fast foods and to define the characteristics of fast foods. The 14 kind of foods(hamburger, pizza, fried chicken, raymyeon, hotdog, doughnut, fried fish cake, jajangmyeon udong, ice cream, dukbokki, spaghetti, sandwich, gimbab, and salad) and 5 characteristics of fast foods(takeout, franchise, fast serving, unhealthy, and cheap price foods) were selected based on the dictionary and previous research papers about fast foods for this study. A total of 306 male and female high school student in Daejeon area were participated. The data were gathered by questionnaire and analyzed by SPSS/WIN 18.0 program. The participants evaluated the fast foods as delicious and convenient foods but non-nutritious, i.e. high fat but vitamin deficient foods. Among the 14 foods examined, hamburger, pizza, and fried chicken were the foods which more than 90% of the participants acknowledged to fast foods. Dukbokki, spaghetti, sandwich, gimbab, and salad were the foods which less than 50% of the participant acknowledged to fast foods. Among the 5 characteristics of fast food examined, unhealthy foods showed the highest sensitivity, specificity, predictive value, and odds ratio(0.803, 0.712, 0.597, and 2.79, respectively), and cheap price showed the lowest values of those(0.565, 0.335, 0.242, and 0.85, respectively) for acknowledging foods to fast foods. As conclusion, hamburger, pizza, and fried chicken were the representative foods of fast foods. Fast foods are generally considered as fast served cheap price foods, but the participants did not think the fast foods as fast and cheap foods. The most distinguished characteristics of fast foods in the students' minds was unhealthy foods.

• Korean Journal of Health Education and Promotion
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.199-212
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• 2002

Stress not only brings disorders in social, family life but brings also changes in eating behaviors so that the imbalance of food intake is induced. Our study was carried out to find out the association between the degree of stress and eating behaviors for the subjects of 262 female college students in the Suwon area. The study instrument was a structured questionnaire composed with questions about demographic data, food preferences, questions related to life styles, and health. All of the collected data was analyzed by the degree of stress score, grouping into high(25〈) and low stress group(〈=25). High stress group showed unhealthy lifestyles, higher percentage of irregular menstruation, smoking, dizziness, higher amount of alcohol consumption. They also showed higher preference rate of spicy foods including hot foods, oil based foods and showed percentage of removing visible fat when eating meats. They more wanted to control weight and prefers snacking compared to low stress group. These results show that stress changes in eating behaviors in a way of unhealthy life styles.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.11 no.6
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• pp.517-524
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• 2017

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: There are limited studies investigating the eating patterns of children's favorite foods. The present study aimed to evaluate a wide range of children's favorite foods, derive its eating patterns, and identify factors related to the patterns. SUBJECTS/METHODS: A nationwide cross-sectional study included 5,458 students in elementary, middle, and high schools. The survey was conducted at each school to evaluate children's favorite food intake, including the intake frequency of 31 food items or food groups, and its related factors, such as demographic, economic, and environmental characteristics and awareness of policies on children's favorite foods. Factor analysis using varimax rotation method and logistic regression analysis were conducted. RESULTS: Two factors were derived as major eating patterns from data of children's favorite foods: the 'unhealthy eating pattern' which mainly involves confectionery, chocolate, ramen, fried food, etc.; and the 'healthy eating pattern' which mainly involves soybean milk, vegetables, fruit juice, and nuts. A stepwise selection procedure through the regression analysis revealed that allowance, use of screen media, less awareness of policies on children's favorite foods, and less interest in health were positively related to the tendency of unhealthy or less-healthy eating patterns (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: This study examined that the eating patterns of children's favorite foods were associated with certain environmental characteristics and awareness about the related policies. These findings suggest that a nutrition education program regarding children's favorite foods needs to be conducted according to the characteristics of students to develop their healthy eating habits and proper choice of favorite foods.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.233-241
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• 2013

There are limited data on healthy dietary patterns protective against metabolic syndrome (MetSyn) development. We identified dietary patterns among middle-aged and older adults and investigated the associations with the incidence of MetSyn. A population-based prospective cohort study included 5,251 male and female Koreans aged 40-69 years. At baseline, all individuals were free of MetSyn, other major metabolic diseases, and known cardiovascular disease or cancer. Cases of MetSyn were ascertained over a 6-year of follow-up. Dietary patterns and their factor scores were generated by factor analysis using the data of a food frequency questionnaire. We performed pooled logistic regression analysis to estimate multivariable-adjusted relative risk (RR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for associations between factor scores and MetSyn risk. Two dietary patterns were identified; (1) a healthy dietary pattern, which included a variety of foods such as fish, seafood, vegetables, seaweed, protein foods, fruits, dairy products, and grains; and (2) an unhealthy dietary pattern, which included a limited number of food items. After controlling for confounding factors, factor scores for the healthy dietary pattern were inversely associated with MetSyn risk (P-value for trend < 0.05) while those for the unhealthy dietary pattern had no association. Individuals in the top quintile of the healthy diet scores showed a multivariable-adjusted RR [95% CI] of 0.76 [0.60-0.97] for MetSyn risk compared with those in the bottom quintile. The beneficial effects were derived from inverse associations with abdominal obesity, low HDL-cholesterol levels, and high fasting glucose levels. Our findings suggest that a variety of healthy food choices is recommended to prevent MetSyn.

• Journal of the Korean Dietetic Association
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.272-291
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• 2016

The purpose of this study was to investigate health-related habits, dietary habits, depression, stress, satisfaction of body weight, mini-dietary assessment (MDA) and dietary behaviors according to self-rated health among 255 university students in Kyungnam province. Statistical analyses were performed using the SPSS software package (version 19.0). The average ages of the subjects were 21.1 years. Participants were asked their self-rated health and 109, 105 and 41 students answered themselves as "healthy", "normal" and "unhealthy", respectively. The pocket money (P<0.05) was related with self-rated health, and meal frequency (P<0.01) of healthy group was higher than that of the unhealthy group. The self-reported depression level (P<0.01) and the score of depression (P<0.05) of the healthy group were lower than those of the unhealthy group. The self-reported stress level of the healthy group (P<0.05) was higher than that of the unhealthy group. The scores of nutritional behavior (P<0.05) and MDA (P<0.01) of the healthy group were higher than those of the unhealthy group. The scores for intakes of meat, fish, egg or beans, cereals and vegetables except kimchi, fruits, balanced diet and various foods were higher in the healthy group than in the unhealthy group. Our results suggest that pocket money, high meal frequency, low depression, satisfaction of present body weight, and good dietary behavior might influence good perception of self-rated health.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.10 no.5
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• pp.530-536
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• 2016

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: The concept of "food deserts" has been widely used in Western countries as a framework to identify areas with constrained access to fresh and nutritious foods, providing guidelines for targeted nutrition and public health programs. Unlike the vast amount of literature on food deserts in a Western context, only a few studies have addressed the concept in an East Asian context, and none of them have investigated spatial patterns of unhealthy food consumption from a South Korean perspective. SUBJECTS/METHODS: We first evaluated the applicability of food deserts in a Korean setting and identified four Korean-specific unhealthy food consumption indicators, including insufficient food consumption due to financial difficulty, limited consumption of fruits and vegetables, excessive consumption of junk food, and excessive consumption of instant noodles. The KNHANES 2008-2012 data in Seoul were analyzed with stratified sampling weights to understand the trends and basic characteristics of these eating patterns in each category. GIS analyses were then conducted for the data spatially aggregated at the sub-district level in order to create maps identifying areas of concern regarding each of these indicators and their combinations. RESULTS: Despite significant reduction in the rate of food insufficiency due to financial difficulty, the rates of excessive consumption of unhealthy foods (junk food and instant noodles) as well as limited consumption of fruits and vegetables have increased or remained high. These patterns tend to be found among relatively younger and more educated groups, regardless of income status. CONCLUSIONS: A GIS-based analysis demonstrated several hotspots as potential "food deserts" tailored to the Korean context based on the observed spatial patterns of undesirable food consumption. These findings could be used as a guide to prioritize areas for targeted intervention programs to facilitate healthy food consumption behaviors and thus improve nutrition and food-related health outcomes.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.16 no.6
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• pp.672-682
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• 2011

This study was conducted to examine the differences in perceived body weight and image and various lifestyles based on the self-rated health of university students when gender was adjusted. Five hundred fifty-five participants were asked their perceived health condition, and 58, 289, 160 and 48 students answered themselves as "very healthy", "healthy", "normal", and "unhealthy", respectively. As compared to the other 3 groups, "unhealthy" group showed higher proportions in dissatisfaction of body weight and negative perception of body image (P < 0.01). As health related lifestyles, "very healthy" group reported longer sleeping time than "unhealthy" group (P < 0.05), and had a higher proportion of people with regular exercise. Among the dietary behaviors, the frequencies of followings significantly different among the groups: "Regularity of meal time" (P < 0.01), "Eat protein foods more than twice a day" (P < 0.001), "Eat vegetables" (P < 0.01), "Eat fruit and fruit juice" (P < 0.01), "Eat vegetable oil added foods" (P < 0.01), "Eat seaweed" (P < 0.01), "Eat breakfast" (P < 0.01), "Modulation in animal fat and high in cholesterol intake" (P < 0.01). Particularly, higher proportion of subjects answered "very healthy" had higher frequencies (6-7 times/week) of these dietary behaviors. Overall results suggest that healthy lifestyle including adequate sleeping time, regular exercise, and good dietary behaviors might be potential factors affecting positive perception of health. In addition, positive perception of body weight and image were related with positive perception of health.

• Journal of Korean Biological Nursing Science
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.297-305
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• 2015

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate eating habits and the frequency of trigger-food consumption in patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and to examine the associations of these variables with IBS symptom severity. Methods: We included 145 ROME III-positive IBS patients (mean age 31.2 years, 73.8% of female). Subjects completed an eating-habits and food-consumption questionnaire, IBS-Symptom Severity Scale (IBS-SSS) and Brief Symptom Inventory-18 (BSI-18) for psychological distress. Results: Subjects with unhealthy eating-habits such as irregular meal times, frequently eating out and overeating tended to show higher IBS symptom severity. The severity of IBS symptoms related to the frequency of the consumption of trigger foods. Subjects who ate trigger-foods (i.e., tofu, beans, almonds, and peanuts) less frequently showed higher IBS symptom severity (p=.045, .042, .016, and .019, respectively). However, subjects who ate spicy foods, instant foods, and noodles more frequently experienced more severe IBS symptoms (p=.018, .011, and .023 respectively). Conclusion: This study showed that IBS symptom severity was related to meal intake patterns and frequency of trigger food consumption. These findings could provide a basis for developing an intervention program for IBS patients.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.107-113
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• 2008

This study was done to investigate the relationship between the perception of body image, body weight satisfaction or dietary behavior and self-rated health status in Korean college students. Subjects, 285 college students, were divided into three groups (healthy, normal, and unhealthy) according to the answer for the self-rated health question. Information about demographic status, self-rated health condition, height and weight, perception of body image, satisfaction of body weight, concern for body weight control, dietary behavior, nutritional knowledge, and health-related characteristics collected by a self-reported questionnaire. The proportion of men and women in each group was not significantly different. The academic year, major, experience of nutritional education, and type of residence were not significantly related with self-rated health but the pocket money range was significantly associated (p<0.05) with self-rated health. The proportion of subjects rated their health as unhealthy was the lowest in 210-300 thousand won pocket money range and was increased in less than 210 thousand won or over 300 thousand won pocket money ranges. There were no significant differences for age, height, weight and BMI between the groups. The body image perception and body weight satisfaction levels of healthy group was significantly higher than those of unhealthy group (p<0.01 and p<0.001, respectively), but the level of concern for body weigh1 control in healthy subjects was significantly lower than that in unhealthy subjects (p<0.05). The proportion of subjects reported as healthy was significantly increased with increased frequencies of following food behaviors; weekly use of protein foods (p<0.01), vegetables (p<0.05) and dairy products (p<0.01), and food habits such as "regularity of meal time" (p<0.01), "eating in moderation" (p<0.05), and "eating breakfast" (p<0.001). Overall results suggested that the college students have tended to have a better perception of health when they have better body image perception, body weight satisfaction and dietary behaviors.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.2 no.3
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• pp.171-177
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• 2008

Adolescents in Busan area were asked in a survey about their perception and attitudes towards fast food. Most respondents answered that they consume fast food once a month because it is fast, easily accessible and tasty. Although they perceived fast food as unhealthy and less nutritious, they were less aware of its effect on their health and nutritional status. The more knowledgeable respondents were about nutrition and health the less likely they were to choose fast food over other meals. However, respondents who had little or no knowledge about the nutritional factors of fast food accounted for 43.1%. As to their source of dietary information, students relied on themselves(31.0%), parents(20.5%) and mends(19.9%). The medium through which students got the most nutrition and health information was television(66.8%), followed by the Internet(36.7%) and magazines(29.7%). This study will enable educators to plan more effective strategies for improving the dietary knowledge of the adolescent population.