• Korean Journal of Health Education and Promotion
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• v.29 no.5
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• pp.27-36
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• 2012

Objectives: Developing efficient health messages is important for improving health behaviors at a societal level. This study attempts to test a few variables that could constitute the elements for measuring readability of health message. The number of subject-verb relationships in a sentence, placement of jargon, i.e., explication before or after each jargon, and the number of less familiar Chinese characters were manipulated to hypothetically differentiate readability. Methods: In a $2{\times}2$ mixed factorial experiment, 152 college students read two health messages regarding side effect of health functional food and energy drink. The participants' perceived readability was asked, and eight questions were developed to measure the participants' recognition of the health information. Results: Those who read messages manipulated to have high readability rated the message significantly higher than those who read messages with low readability. Also, the former answered the questions more correctly than the latter, implying the association between readability and knowledge acquisition regarding health. Conclusions: Readability is suggested as a factor determining the effect of health messages in affecting the public's health risk perception and relevant behaviors. Further studies to sophisticate the measurement itself and to examine the effect of actual public messages with different readabilities are suggested.

• Journal of the Korean Society of School Health
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.169-181
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• 2009

Purpose: Mood disorders such as depression and bipolar disorder are a major mental health problem in college students. We investigate the prevalence of depression and bipolar disorder and the relevance of risk factors for these mood disorders among one college freshmen. Methods: The subjects were 2,865 college students who entered one university located in Seoul and Ansung in 2009. We used BDI (Beck Depression Inventory) for depression assessment and K-MDQ (Mood Disorder Questionnaire) for bipolar disorder assessment. Demographic and socioeconomic factors were measured by questionnaire. Height, weight, blood pressure, total cholesterol, complete blood cell count, and liver function test data were obtained by physical examination for freshmen. Chi-square test and multiple logistic regression were performed to analyze the possible risk factors for depression and bipolar disorder. Results: With different BDI cutoff value, 16 and 21, the prevalence of depression was 8.7% (male: 7.6%, female: 10.1%) and 2.4% (male: 2.5%, female: 2.3%), separately. 'Low economic status', 'urban birth place', and 'low grade at entrance' were significantly associated with depression. Using the original cutoff criterion, defined as clustering of 7 or more symptoms that caused moderate or severe problems, the prevalence of bipolar disorder was 1.3% (male: 1.4%, female: 1.1%). The risk factor of bipolar disorder was academic fields (art fields). Conclusion: Depression and bipolar disorder are common disease in college freshmen. Therefore, Campus-based mental health service program is needed to help with prevention of and early intervention of these mood disorders.

• Child Health Nursing Research
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.341-350
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• 2006

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to describe high-risk health behaviors in middle school adolescents and to identify factors related to this behavior. Method: This survey study employed a self administered questionnaire given to 621 students enrolled in one middle school located in Gyeonggi province. Using the cluster sampling method, 4 classes from the 7th, 8th, and 9th grades were selected. The survey was done between April 20 and May 19, 2004. Data were analyzed using SAS. Result: The results showed that 19.1% of adolescents smoked cigarettes and 8.4 % drank regularly. The mean score for resilience was 6.92 (range:0-10) and for depression, 23.62 (range:0-50). The adolescents in higher grades reported significantly more experience with pornography. Also, adolescents who reported have fewer conversations with their parents had significantly more experience with pornography. Depression was significantly higher for those students who had better academic skills and higher family income. Resilience level was significantly higher for the students who reported better schools records and higher family income. The most important factor related to the high risk behaviors, depression, and resilience was conversations with parents. Conclusion: This study suggests that to develop an effective high-risk health behavior prevention program for adolescents, it is necessary to include communication skills with the parents.

• Journal of Korean Society on Water Environment
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.364-370
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• 2011

Water quality criteria for human health protection are derived based on the human health risk assessment. Water quality criteria in Korean freshwater bodies have been derived according to the equations developed by the US Environmental Protection Agency. The equations include the fish intake parameter, which is very important factor that significantly influences on the criteria derivation. So far, several fish intake values were used in human health risk assessment for water quality standards and effluent standards. However, these values are not consistent and they refer to various sources. Therefore, there is a need to suggest the most appropriate value of fish intake parameter to derive freshwater quality criteria in Korea. In this study, national and international fish intake values were widely collected and evaluated to select the adequate value of fish intake parameter that can be applied in Korea. The USEPA presented fish intake parameter as the 17.5 g/day for general adults and sport fishers and 142.4 g/day for subsistence fishers. In Korean reports, wide range values of 2 to 67.7 g/day were suggested as fish intake value. These values included finfish and shellfish intakes in common but had various habits. This study found that the 52.4 g/day suggested in Korean Exposure Factors Handbook published by the Ministry of Environment in 2007 seemed to be the suitable fish intake parameter to derive the freshwater quality criteria in Korea. The value is based on water corrected intakes of finfish and shellfish present in freshwater and coastal areas. We expect that this report can be useful to select suitable fish intake value in human health risk assessment for establishing freshwater quality standard in Korea.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.528-540
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• 2021

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: In a healthy person, from 35 years of age, there is an annual loss of muscle mass at the rate of 1-2% and is associated with a decline in the quality of life. This study aimed to identify the particular dietary patterns associated with the risk of lower lean muscle mass in Korean postmenopausal women. SUBJECTS/METHODS: The Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) is a population-based, continuous cross-sectional annual survey. The participants of the KNHANES IV (2008-2009) and V (2010-2011) were considered for this study. The study sample consisted of 1548 postmenopausal women, aged 45-86 years. Lower lean muscle mass was defined as having appendicular skeletal muscle mass corrected for body weight less than 1 standard deviation of the young reference group aged 20 to 39 years in KNHANES IV and V. To identify the dietary pattern using factor analysis, 24-h recall data was used. RESULTS: The prevalence of lower lean muscle mass was 31.3% in this study population. Four dietary patterns were identified by factor analysis; 'Diverse', 'Western', 'Traditional', and 'Snacks and beverages'. The 'Western' pattern, highest factor loadings for flour and bread, potatoes, red meat, processed meat, eggs, and cheese, was significantly associated with a high (60%) risk of lower lean muscle mass (odds ratio [95% confidence interval] = 1.60 [1.07-2.39], P for trend = 0.01) after adjustments for potential covariates. The other 3 dietary patterns were not associated with lower lean muscle mass. CONCLUSIONS: The study findings suggest that the 'Western' dietary pattern that includes flour and bread, potatoes, red meat, processed meat, eggs, and cheese, may be associated with a higher risk of lower lean muscle mass in Korean postmenopausal women.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.27-40
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• 2014

Dyslipidemia is a component of the metabolic syndrome and a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. Nutrition counseling is important to improve dyslipidemia. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of nutrition counseling in adults with risk factors for dyslipidemia diagnosed by the national health screening program. The nutrition counseling for adults with risk factors for dyslipidemia was carried out at a public health center in Gyeonggi-do. Thirty four patients out of forty five participants in the program completed the nutrition counseling program. The nutrition counseling was provided 3 times during a 12-week period. Individualized nutrition counseling to improve dietary habits was conducted after examining participants' dietary intake through questionnaires about dietary habits and whether they practice dietary guidelines. Data about serum lipid profiles, body composition, nutrition knowledge, the practice of dietary guidelines, and dietary behavior were collected before and after nutrition counseling to evaluate the effectiveness of nutrition counseling. All data were statistically analyzed by SPSS program (Korea ver.18.0) and significant difference was evaluated by paired t-test and ${\chi}^2$-test. Body weight, body fat and WHR were significantly decreased after nutrition counseling. Total-cholesterol, TG, and LDL-cholesterol were significantly decreased but HDL-cholesterol did not show significant changes. Both scores of nutrition knowledge and the practice of dietary guidelines improved significantly (p < 0.001). This study shows that nutrition counseling helps to encourage healthy eating practices and to improve serum lipid profiles of adults with risk factors for dyslipidemia. Overall, results indicated that nutrition counseling resulted in positive changes to lower the reliance on medications. Therefore, nutrition counseling should be considered for the initial treatment of dyslipidemia.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.23
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• pp.10421-10425
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• 2015

Background: While the incidence of non-Hodgkins lymphoma (NHL) has been rising worldwide, the reasons remain undefined. Recent research has focused on effect of red andf processed meat intake as a risk factor, but with inconclusive results. We therefore conducted a meta-analysis of data published to date, to ascertain the overall association between intake and NHL. Materials and Methods: A published literature search was performed through Pubmed, Cochrane Library, Medline, and Science Citation Index Expanded databases for articles published in English. Pooled odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CIs) were calculated using random or fixed effects models. Heterogeneity was assessed using Chi-square and I2 statistics. Dissemination bias was evaluated by funnel plot analysis.We performed a formal meta-analysis using summary measures from these studies. Results: In total, 11 published studies were included in the final analysis. The combined analysis revealed that there was significant association between the red meat and NHL risk (OR=1.10, 95%CI: 1.02 to 1.19, p=0.01). Additionally, there was showed significance association between processed red meat and NHL risk (OR=1.17, 95%CI: 1.06 to 1.29, p=0.001). In subgroup analysis, a statistical significant association was noted between diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) (OR=1.20, 95%CI: 1.04 to 2.37, P=0.01) and red meat intake. Conclusions: In this meta-Analysis, there was evidence for association between consumption of red meat, or processed meat and risk of NHL, particularly with the DLBCL subtype in the red meat case.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.13 no.11
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• pp.5637-5642
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• 2012

Objective: Gastric cancer (GC) is one of the most common malignancies and its mortality ranks third among all cancers in China. We previously noted that XRCC1 Arg194Trp was associated with GC risk in Western China in a study on XRCC1 Arg194Trp and ADPRT Val762Ala. We aimed to further explore the association of these polymorphisms with risk of the noncardia subtype. Methods: We enrolled 176 noncardia GC patients and 308 controls from four hospitals and a community between October 2010 and August 2011. Genotyping was performed in a 384-well plate format on the Sequenom MassARRAY platform. A self-designed questionnaire was utilized to collect epidemiological data from the subjects regarding demographic factors and potential risk factors. Results: Subjects were aged $56.8{\pm}11.8$ (mean ${\pm}$ standard deviation) and $57.6{\pm}11.1$ years in the case and control groups, respectively. Individuals carrying the XRCC1 Trp/Trp or Arg/Trp variant genotype were at significantly increased risk of noncardia GC (adjusted OR, 1.48; 95% CI, 1.00-2.17), after adjustment for family history of cancer, drinking, and smoking. The increased risk of XRCC1 Arg194Trp variant genotype was more pronounced among subjects below 60 years old (adjusted OR, 1.78; 95% CI, 1.07-2.96), compared to older individuals. ADPRT Val762Ala variants (Ala/Ala or Val/Ala) were not associated with noncardia GC (adjusted OR, 1.03; 95% CI, 0.69-1.54). Conclusions: Our study suggests that XRCC1 Arg194Trp is a genetic susceptibility factor for developing noncardia GC in Han Chinese in Western China. In particular, individuals with the XRCC1 Arg194Trp variant genotype are at increased risk for GC below 60 years old.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.66-72
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• 2002

During the last ten years, effort has been made for reducing maintenance cost for aged equipments and ensuring safety, efficiency and profitability of petrochemical and refinery plants. Hence, it was required to develop advanced methods which meet this need. RBI(Risk Based Inspection) methodology is one of the most promising technology satisfying the requirements in the field of integrity management. In this study, a qualitative assessment algorithm for RBI based on the API 581 code was reconstructed for developing an RBI software. The user-friendly realRBI software is developed with a module for evaluating qualitative risk category using the potential consequence factor and the likelihood factor.

• Journal of agricultural medicine and community health
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.193-204
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• 1998

Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death and disability in Korea. Their risk factors can be classified as either modifiable or nonmodifiable and among modifiable factors are high bood pressure, elevated blood cholesterol, obesity and cigarette smoking. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the risk factors for the cardiovascular diseases in a rural community and to get basic data for the development of a community-based rick reduction intervention program. Evaluation involved population-based, cross-sectional samples of adult residents in a rurual community. We measured blood pressure, body fat percent by bioelectric impedance fatness analyzer and serum cholesterol and interviewed adult residents over 20-year-old age. Blood pressure was checked twice and hypertension was classified by the sixth report of the Joint National Committee on Detection. Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure. The Cutpoints for high blood cholesterol was used National Cholesterol Treatment Guidelines and those for obesity was 25% in male. 30% in female. The results were as follows: 1. Prevalence of definitive hypertension was 59.7% in males and 54.4% in female. 2. Prevalence of hypercholesterolemia was 14.3% in male and 18.2% in female. 3. Prevalence of obese was 10.7% in male and 41.1% in female. 4. Among definitive hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, and obesity 52.1% possessed one risk factor, 12.6% two risk factors and 2.5% three risk factors in males. In females 41.4% possessed one risk factor and 27.6%. 5.7% respectively. 5. The smoking rate was 65.8% in males and 5.2% in females. Our results are used effectively for the community-based intervention towards cardiovascukr diseases risk reduction. However, because of limitations in our study design, further datas are needed including other risk factors and in-person clinical datas.