• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.425-432
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• 2015

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Food insecurity has been suggested as being negatively associated with healthy behaviors and health status. This study was performed to identify the associations between food insecurity and healthy behaviors among Korean adults. SUBJECTS/METHODS: The data used were the 2011 Community Health Survey, cross-sectional representative samples of 253 communities in Korea. Food insecurity was defined as when participants reported that their family sometimes or often did not get enough food to eat in the past year. Healthy behaviors were considered as non-smoking, non-high risk drinking, participation in physical activities, eating a regular breakfast, and maintaining a normal weight. Multiple logistic regression and multinomial logistic regression analyses were used to identify the association between food insecurity and healthy behaviors. RESULTS: The prevalence of food insecurity was 4.4% (men 3.9%, women 4.9%). Men with food insecurity had lower odds ratios (ORs) for non-smoking, 0.75 (95% CI: 0.68-0.82), participation in physical activities, 0.82 (95% CI: 0.76-0.90), and eating a regular breakfast, 0.66 (95% CI: 0.59-0.74), whereas they had a higher OR for maintaining a normal weight, 1.19 (95% CI: 1.09-1.30), than men with food security. Women with food insecurity had lower ORs for non-smoking, 0.77 (95% CI: 0.66-0.89), and eating a regular breakfast, 0.79 (95% CI: 0.72-0.88). For men, ORs for obesity were 0.78 (95% CI: 0.70-0.87) for overweight and 0.56 (95% CI: 0.39-0.82) for mild obesity. For women, the OR for moderate obesity was 2.04 (95% CI: 1.14-3.63) as compared with normal weight. CONCLUSIONS: Food insecurity has a different impact on healthy behaviors. Provision of coping strategies for food insecurity might be critical to improve healthy behaviors among the population.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.48 no.3
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• pp.347-355
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• 2008

Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), a member of the perfluoroalkyl acids that have wide commercial applications, is persistent organic pollutants widely spread throughout the environment and human population. But little is known about the adverse biological effects of the PFOA. In the present study, the toxicological effects of PFOA were investigated in rats. Sprague-Dawley rats (N = 10 in each group) were orally administered with PFOA in drinking water for 4 weeks (0, 100, 200, or 400 ppm in male, and 0, 200, 400, or 800 ppm in female). Three female rats given 800 ppm died during the study. PFOA treatment decreased the body weight gain and increased the liver weights in both genders. Serum biochemical investigations revealed significant increases in the aspartate aminotransferase, alanine transaminase, alkaline phosphatase, blood urea nitrogen, total cholesterol, and total bilirubin in male but in female. Serum estradiol (E2) levels were increased in all treated rats. Histopathologically, hepatocellular hypertrophy around central vein was noted in the liver of treated rats. No significant histopathological changes were noted in other organs. In conclusion, PFOA induced toxicological changes in the liver and increased serum E2 level which was not related to histopathological changes of endocrine and reproductive system.

• The Journal of the Korea institute of electronic communication sciences
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.679-685
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• 2012

The population with massive waist circumference is increasing in comparison with that with obesity in entire bodies in Korea. It is assumed that prevalence of obesity is closely related with changes in marriage status such as divorce or separation by death, and age, educational background, diet habits and living environment depending on presence or absence of spouses. To identify whether there are relations between spouse, BMI and waist circumference under the conditions such as life cycle age, educational level, income, smoking, drinking and walking controlled, this study used data of national health and nutrition research organized by Korea Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The subjects of the study were a total of 7,178: 3,043 men and 4,135 women whose ages were above 19 and married. As a result of controlling independent variables except a factor of spouse, there were no statistically significant relations between presence of spouse, waist circumference and BMI in men, but odds rate of waist circumference was lower, 0.78(95% CI 0.636-0.954) when the female subjects had no spouse than when they had spouse.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.57-66
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• 1991

This study was carried out for 5 years between 1984 and 1986 and 1989 and 1990. This interviewers visited 292 households to evaluate the perception of the residents using .the. Simple Piped Water Supply (SPWS), and examined the pollution source surrounding 42 SPWS facilities and water quality by the chemical and microbiological method. The purpose of this study was to find out problems linked with SPWS and to investigate more efficient way of improvement in rural water supply. The results of the study are surmnarized as follows: 1) Approximately 55% of the sampled population have been served by simple piped water supply. 2) The drinking water was mostly taken from the springs in 16 sites and valley water in 26 sites. 3) Considering the type of distribution of the SPWS, there are 28 natural gravity systems and 14 pumping systems. 4) Out of the 180 SPWS in Chun Sung Area, 74% of the SPWS facilities were used more than ten years. In addition, 40% of residents expressed the need for repairs of old facilities. 5) 48% of the SPWS facilities are neighbored with pollution source. 6) 50% of the maintenance crews were not committed totheir job but instead, the facilities were operated by some residents or community leaders who were personally concerned about quality of the facilities. 7) About 85% of the residents answered that SPWS was convenient and helpful. 8) About 57% of the residents complaind that the amount of daily water supply is not adequate. 9) About 74% of the residents felt that the water quality is high for dringking water and therefore, 52% of the facilities were not properly chlorinated. But in contrast, the biochemical tests indicated that only 28% of the SPWS met the dringking water quality standards. 10) Maintenance cost per a household ranges form 500 to 2, 000Won (1 $ = 700 Won) a month. Most of the cost was to cover the power electric charge. For the effective maintenance and arrangement of the facilities, gorvermental financial support for the maintenance is strongly recommended.

• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.10-18
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• 2017

Occupational hazards of firefighting and rescue works include frequent exposure to emergencies and life-threatening situations. These stressful work conditions of being constantly under pressure and exposed to potentially traumatic events put them at higher risk of developing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), compared to the general population. PTSD is a potentially debilitating mental disorder, due to persistent intrusive thoughts, negative alterations of mood and cognition, hypervigilance, avoidance of similar situations and reminders, and re-experiences of the traumatic event. Previous studies have shown a relatively high prevalence of PTSD among firefighters, indicating the need for a systematic approach of early detection and prevention. Therefore, a critical review of the current literature on PTSD in firefighters would provide valuable insights into developing effective prevention and intervention programs. Literature indicated that there are risk factors of PTSD in firefighters, such as pre-existing depression, anxiety, sleep disorders, occupational stress, physical symptoms, and binge drinking, whereas social support and adequate rewards are protective factors. Although there are differences in the prevalence of PTSD across studies, partly due to various assessment tools utilized, different sample sizes, and sample characteristics, over one tenth of the firefighters were estimated to have PTSD. The current review warrants further investigations to precisely assess PTSD and co-morbid mental disorders, functional outcomes, and associated factors, and to develop evidence-based preventive and interventional programs to help firefighters with PTSD.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.16-22
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• 2007

Objective : The purpose of this study was to evaluate the levels of DNA damage in human lymphocytes caused by smoking and other lifestyle factors. Methods : The study population consisted of 173 normal healthy male adults from 21 to 59 years old. The demographic and lifestyle variables were obtained from administered questionnaires. The level of lymphocytic DNA damage in the peripheral blood was evaluated by the Comet assay. Statistical analyses were done by general linear model analysis and Dunnett's multiple comparison. Results : The difference in DNA damage between smokers and non-smokers was statistically significant. The means for the Tail%DNA were found to be 10.48 in the current smokers and 9.60 in the non-smokers (p < 0.05). The tail moment means were 1.58 and 1.45 (p < 0.05) for the current smokers and non-smokers, respectively. The number of cigarettes smoked per day did not result in a significant difference in the level of DNA damage among the smokers. Other lifestyle factors such as age, and drinking and exercise habits were not related to DNA damage. Conclusions : The DNA damage in the lymphocytes of smokers was found to be significantly higher than that for non-smokers. However, the number of cigarettes smoked per day was not related to DNA damage. Further study is needed to evaluate the relationship between the amount of smoking and level of damage to DNA. In addition, the status of DNA repair activities should be assessed.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.13 no.8
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• pp.4087-4091
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• 2012

To evaluate the relationship between polymorphisms (28 bp repeated sequences in 5'-UTR and 6-bp ins/del in 3'-UTR) in then thymidylate synthetase gene (TS) and risk of colorectal, colon and rectal cancers, we conducted a case-control study with 315 cases of colorectal cancer and 439 population-based controls in Jiangsu province, China. TS genotypes were identified using PCR.RFLP (restriction fragment length polymorphism) methods. Odds ratios (ORs) were estimated with an unconditional logistic regression model. We found that the distributions of 5'-UTR genotypes in TS were significantly different between controls and male colon cases (${\chi}^2$=8.25, P = 0.016). Compared with 3R/3R genotype, individuals with the 2R allele were at an increased risk of colon cancer (age-, BMI-, smoking- and alcohol drinking-adjusted OR=1.98, 95%CI: 1.11-3.53) among men. In ccontrast, the 6-bp ins/del polymorphism at the TS 3'- UTR did not influence risk of the colorectal, colon and rectal cancers. When combined genotypes for both TS 5'-UTR and 3'-UTR polymorphisms were evaluated, individuals with the 5'-UTR 2R allele had a OR of 3.61 (95%CI: 1.38-9.49) for colon cancer among men with the 3'-UTR .6bp/-6bp genotype. These results show that the polymorphism of the 28 bp repeated sequences in TS 5'-UTR could influence susceptibility to colon cancer and that there was a coordinated effect between TS 3'-UTR and 5'-UTR polymorphisms in increasing risk of colon cancer among Chinese men.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.11
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• pp.6601-6604
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• 2013

Aim: Associations between polymorphisms in miR-146aG>C, miR-196a2C>T and miR-499A>G and risk of HCC, and interaction with HBV infection in a Chinese population, were the target of the present research. Methods: The duplex polymerase-chain-reaction with confronting-two-pair primers (PCR-RFLP) was performed to determine the genotypes of the miR-146aG>C, miR-196a2C>T and miR-499A>G genotypes. Associations of polymorphisms with the risk of HCC were estimated by conditional logistic regression analysis. Results: Drinking, family history of cancer, HBsAg and HCV were risk factors for HCC. Multivariate regression analyses showed that subjects carrying the miR-196a2 CC genotype had significantly increased risk of HCC, with an adjusted OR (95% CI) of 2.18 (1.23-3.80). In addition, cases carrying the miR-196a2 C allele had a 1.64-fold increase in the risk for HCC (95%CI=1.03-2.49). The miR-196a2 CT and TT genotypes greatly significantly increased the risk of HCC in subjects with HBV infection, with adjusted ORs (95% CI) of 2.02 (1.12-3.68) and 2.69 (1.28-5.71), respectively. Conclusion: Our results demonstrate that miR-196a2 CC genotype and C allele have an important role in HCC risk in Chinese, especially in patients with HBV infection.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Integrative Medicine
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.125-135
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• 2020

Purpose : Obesity indices are major predictive markers for coronary artery stenosis, but there are few studies about the relationship between obesity indices and coronary artery stenosis in the Korean population. Therefore, we analyzed the association between obesity indices and coronary artery stenosis among health-screen examinees. Methods : This study included 99 males and females who visited a health-examination center. The obesity indices included body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), visceral adipose tissue (VAT), visceral adipose tissue/subcutaneous adipose tissue ratio (V/S ratio). All subjects had their degree of coronary artery stenosis measured using coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA). A multiple logistic regression test was conducted to analyze the association between obesity indices and coronary artery stenosis. Results : This study was taken by multiple logistic regression test adjusted by age, sex, smoking status, frequency of alcohol drinking/week and frequency of exercise/week. The adjusted odds ratio for the presence of coronary artery stenosis for subjects with abdominal obesity (abdominal obesity defined as a waist circumference ≥ 90 cm in males; ≥ 85 cm in females) was 6.263 (95 % confidence interval (CI) 1.974-19.869), for subjects with visceral obesity by visceral adipose tissue (visceral obesity defined as a visceral adipose tissue ≥ 100) was 11.430 (95 % CI 3.044-42.928). Conclusion : In this study of adults, WC and VAT were independent predictors of coronary artery stenosis. These results suggest that WC and VAT may be useful markers of coronary artery stenosis.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Environmental Restoration Technology
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.1-14
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• 2013

A species restoration plan requires a process where the first is to thoroughly study the target species, second is to provide them with an onsite reproduction and adaptation period, and finally, third is to release them to their natural habitat. This study focuses on the space planning for target species' successful onsite reproduction and adaptation. For the study, a site planning near Sobaeksan National Park was implemented with Red Fox's behavior and habitat characteristics in mind for its recovery, reproduction, and natural adaptation. During site selection and planning, the basic aim was to incorporate the existing site as much as possible thus reducing the impact on the environment from the recovery plan. In addition, for a stable recovery of the Red Fox population, the site was classified into three different areas : core area, buffer zone, and transition area. Then, the facilities that help Red Fox's reproduction and adaptation such as reproduction center, foraging site, adaptation training center were planned. Under the condition that the site will be off limit to the public, a limited number of paths for monitoring was provided. For the site's vegetation, the existing species were planted as much as possible with the addition of plants that the Red Fox consume. The facilities included as Red Fox's habitat were fox burrows for hiding and ecological ponds for drinking. From this study, the recovery of the endangered fox species is expected as well as the contribution to an effort to increase of awareness toward the biological resources in Korea through Nagoya protocol. Furthermore, it has the potential to change the public's attitude toward endangered species recovery projects through publicizing and providing experience to the national park visitors.