• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
• /
• v.28 no.6
• /
• pp.449-465
• /
• 2023

Objectives: This study aimed to analyze menu patterns and food group diversity in daycare centers managed by the Center for Children's Foodservice Management in South Korea. Methods: Data from 18 Center for Children's Foodservice Management centers across various provinces (excluding Jeju Island) were analyzed. We examined 8,796 meals served in February, May, August, and December 2021, focusing on seasonal lunch and snack menus for children aged 3-5. Foods were categorized into 19 groups for lunch and 21 for snacks. The frequency of food groups and dietary patterns were assessed using the Dietary Diversity Score. Analyses were conducted using Excel 2016 and IBM SPSS Statistics version 28. Results: Most lunch menus (89%) included five menu items, with a ratio of grain, meat, and vegetables at 88%. Snack menus typically had one item (57%), with significantly more items in the afternoon compared to the morning (P < 0.001). Regarding snack patterns, 75.2% of morning snacks and 61.1% of afternoon snacks contained only one solid food and drink (P < 0.001). Fruit and milk (22.4%) was the most prevalent pattern in morning snacks, while grain and milk (31%) dominated afternoon snacks (P < 0.001). Only 48% of daycare center menus (all snacks and lunch) included all five food groups (grain, meat, vegetables, fruit, and milk). Notably, only 83% included milk and 57% included fruit. Conclusions: These findings highlight the need to improve food variety and diversity in the Center for Children's Foodservice Management-managed daycare center menus. Developing more detailed guidelines for menu structure and food composition is crucial to ensure children receive balanced and diverse nutrition.

• Human Ecology Research
• /
• v.62 no.1
• /
• pp.33-45
• /
• 2024

This study aimed to identify the need for dietary management due to weight changes among middle-aged women in the Gwangju area during the COVID-19 pandemic. To achieve this, a survey was conducted of their eating habits, dietary and lifestyle habits, alterations in food intake, and changes in menopausal symptoms. Overall, significant differences were found between dietary and lifestyle habits (p<.01) depending on the frequency of eating out. Specifically, those who eating out two to three times a week exhibited a significant increase in negative habits such as ordering delivery food and consuming instant meals. In terms of food consumption changes, those who eating out two or three times a week displayed a relatively higher increase in the consumption of non-recommended food than those who eating out once a week. Regarding changes in menopausal symptoms, individuals who eating out two to three times a week experienced a greater increase in the severity of menopausal symptoms than those who eating out once a week. In terms of dietary and lifestyle habit changes, it was found that the more frequent the exercise, the greater the overall improvement in dietary and lifestyle habits (p<.001). Moreover, women who did not experience weight gain exhibited positive changes in their dietary and lifestyle habits compared with women who experienced weight gain. The results for food consumption changes revealed that the consumption of non-recommended foods was higher in middle-aged women who experienced weight gain, particularly the consumption of meat (p<.001) and noodles (p<.05).

• Journal of Industrial Convergence
• /
• v.22 no.2
• /
• pp.127-134
• /
• 2024

This study was attempted to understand the phenomenon in depth by exploring the food craving of hemodialysis patients experienced during hemodialysis. Participants selected seven adult patients diagnosed with end-stage renal failure and receiving hemodialysis treatment from medical institutions. he collected data were analyzed using a phenomenological analysis method. As a result of the analysis the food craving of hemodialysis patients was derived into two categories included craving experience in the cognitive domain craving experience in the emotional domain and five themes: 'Looking for foods that are water and watery as a result of thirst','Food thoughts come to mind all day as a result of a limited diet', 'Always hungry', 'Faced with appetizing situations every hour', 'experiencing negative emotions due to failure to control meals'. The results of this study which sheds light on food craving from the perspective of hemodialysis patients should improve the understanding of hemodialysis patients appetite control water restrictions and dietary compliance and allow them to understand the food craving attributes of hemodialysis patients and provide customized education optimized for that extent when applying dietary education and nursing interventions suitable for them.

• Journal of Advanced Technology Convergence
• /
• v.3 no.2
• /
• pp.9-15
• /
• 2024

Due to the high inflation rate of dining out, along with changes in group meals or cafeteria services, office workers are increasingly using workplace cafeterias to reduce their meal expenses even slightly. With the recent development of ICT technology, various fields are realizing that not only are smartphones becoming more popular, but they are also becoming an integration of the latest technologies. In this paper, we analyze the current status of cafeterias with a large number of customers and propose ways to improve problems or difficulties. Since most people always carry their smartphones for urgent communication or work tasks, we aim to develop a cafeteria management system that utilizes the NFC function of smartphones. By presenting the process from customer entry to menu selection, it will enable more efficient use of the cafeteria.

• Journal of the Korean Dietetic Association
• /
• v.30 no.2
• /
• pp.140-151
• /
• 2024

This study evaluated the effectiveness of an obesity program developed to solve 'obesity', which was selected as the top priority for urgent improvement among the dietary problems of elementary school students in Busan. The program aimed to practice four health rules every day (sleep early, eat two vegetables with each meal, reduce sugary snacks, and exercise for 30 minutes every day). The participants were trained to practice the four rules online in real time every day for three weeks, and their performance in nutrition education tasks was monitored using Padlet. The anthropometric measurements showed no change in the overall average weight before and after participating in the program, but all students grew in height (z=-6.978, P<0.001), and the number of obese students decreased significantly (z=-3.317, P<0.001). This obesity program was effective in improving height growth and obesity in elementary school students. In terms of dietary changes, after participating in the program, the frequency of vegetable consumption increased significantly (z=-4.849, P<0.001), the frequency of sweet snack consumption decreased significantly (z=-4.298, P<0.001), and the bedtime improved (z=-1.000). Therefore, the non-face-to-face, self-directed obesity program developed in this study is expected to reduce the workload of nutrition teachers carrying a heavy workload such as meal service and nutrition classes, and can be used as an efficient nutrition counseling program.

• Annals of Occupational and Environmental Medicine
• /
• v.35
• /
• pp.43.1-43.12
• /
• 2023

Background: Gig workers, also known as platform workers, are independent workers who are not employed by any particular company. The number of gig economy workers has rapidly increased worldwide in the past decade. There is a dearth of occupational health studies among gig economy workers. We aimed to investigate the association between exposure to violence and job stress in gig economy workers and depressive symptoms. Methods: A total of 955 individuals (521 gig workers and 434 general workers) participated in this study and variables were measured through self-report questionnaires. Depressive symptoms were evaluated by the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 when the score was greater than or equal to 10 points. The odds ratio with 95% confidence interval was calculated using multivariable logistic regression adjusted for age, sex, working hours, education level, exposure to violence and job stress. Results: 19% of gig economy workers reported depressive symptoms, while only 11% of general workers reported the depressive symptoms. In association to depressive symptoms among gig economy workers, the mainly result of odds ratios for depressive symptoms were as follows: 1.81 for workers type, 3.53 for humiliating treatment, 2.65 for sexual harassment, 3.55 for less than three meals per day, 3.69 for feeling too tired to do housework after leaving work. Conclusions: Gig economic workers are exposed to violence and job stress in the workplace more than general workers, and the proportion of workers reporting depressive symptoms is also high. These factors are associated to depressive symptoms. Furthermore, the gig workers associated between depressive symptoms and exposure to violence, job stress.

• Journal of the Korean Dietetic Association
• /
• v.30 no.1
• /
• pp.41-60
• /
• 2024

The number of elderly in care facilities is increasing in parallel with a rapid increase in the elderly population in Korea. We analyzed the meal satisfaction ratings, food preferences, and nutritional intakes of 74 patients aged ≥65 years living in a nursing hospital in Daegu. Food preferences were high for cooked rice, rice gruel, meat soup, soybean paste stew, beef, frozen pollack, squid, egg, spinach, sea mustard, cabbage kimchi, apple, peanut, drinking yogurt, pickled perilla leaves, and salted squid. Preferences for duck (P<0.01) and vegetable (P<0.01) cooking method were significantly different for men and women, and preference for soybean paste stew increased with age (P<0.05). Regarding nutrient intakes, men had higher energy (P<0.01), carbohydrates (P<0.05), and zinc (P<0.05) intakes than women, while women had higher vitamin C (P<0.05) intake than men. Furthermore, energy (P<0.001), carbohydrates (P<0.001), protein (P<0.05), dietary fiber (P<0.01), vitamin B₆ (P<0.01), phosphorus (P<0.05), and zinc (P<0.001) intakes significantly decreased with age. Men had a significantly higher nutrient adequacy ratios (NARs) for carbohydrates (P<0.05) and cal- cium (P<0.01) than women, while women had a significantly higher NARs for protein (P<0.05), vitamin A (P<0.01), vitamin C (P<0.05), thiamine (P<0.01), riboflavin (P<0.001), iron (P<0.001), and zinc (P<0.01). Mean adequacy ratios were 0.69 for men and 0.75 for women. In particular, NARs for carbohydrates (P<0.01), vitamin B₆ (P<0.01), and calcium (P<0.05) decreased significantly with age. In summary, the study shows that supplementing vitamin C, vitamin B₆, calcium, and iron, reducing sodium, and providing meals that reflect preferences will improve the nutritional statuses of elderly residents in a nursing hospital.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
• /
• v.44 no.4
• /
• pp.26-40
• /
• 2023

Objectives: This study was to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of Bojungikgi-tang for lung cancer patients with anorexia. Methods: This was a single-arm, open-label, and single-center trial, and suitable participants took Bojungikgi-tang (Buzhongyiqi-tang in Chinese, Hochuekki-to in Japanese) three times a day before or between meals for six weeks (42 days). After registration of clinical trials (visit 2), they visited the hospital every three weeks (visits 3 and 4) and measured or tested the effectiveness or safety evaluation variables to analyze the results. The primary outcome was the anorexia/cachexia subscale (A/CS) of functional assessment of anorexia/cachexia therapy (FAACT) score. Results: Seventeen lung cancer patients were included in the intention-to-treat (ITT) analysis. Lung cancer patients had higher A/CS of FAACT scores after six weeks of Bojungikgi-tang administration compared to that at the baseline. This was not significant four lung cancer (p=0.1668). In the secondary outcomes, the visual analog scale (VAS) score of anorexia decreased significantly (p=0.0009), and the CD4/CD8 ratio (p=0.0396) and CD4 levels (p=0.0345) significantly increased after six weeks of treatment. No serious adverse events were reported with Bojungikgi-tang in lung cancer patients. Conclusions: Bojungikgi-tang can be an effective and safe treatment for anorexia in lung cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy.

• Clinical Nutrition Research
• /
• v.13 no.2
• /
• pp.108-120
• /
• 2024

The study aimed to investigate the basic data to derive plans for snack provision to improve the nutritional status of older adults living in long-term care facilities (LFs) or long-term care hospitals (LHs). The 252 respondents (118 from LHs and 134 from LFs) were included in the study. The questionnaire of nationwide cross-sectional survey was developed by the authors and registered dietitians. The written questionnaire was sent to the food service managers across 800 LFs or LHs. The online survey was introduced using the online platform and network site for dietitians. More than 70% of live-in and non-live-in LFs provided snacks, which were mainly provided one to two times a day. Most institutions provided fruits one to three times a week. The main considerations when providing fruit were in the order of residents' preference, cost, and ease of consumption. The reasons for not serving fruit included cost and differences in the residents' eating and mastication abilities. Most institutions also provided dairy products at a frequency of one to three times a week. The reasons for not serving dairy products included cost and the lack of awareness of the need to provide them. To improve the quality of life and the offer benefits of fruits and dairy products to older people, efforts are needed to propose a plan to expand the provision of snacks in appropriate quantities and varieties.

• Journal of the Korean Dietetic Association
• /
• v.30 no.3
• /
• pp.181-191
• /
• 2024

School foodservices serve vegetarian meals to shape healthy eating habits and create environmental awareness among students. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the nutritional content of vegetarian menus of an elementary school foodservice. We examined 334 vegetarian and 545 non-vegetarian menus at elementary schools in the Chungnam area and compared their food composition and nutrient content. The average number of dishes per vegetarian menu was 7.0, which was significantly lower than the 7.3 items per non-vegetarian menu. The number of staple and dessert dishes on the vegetarian menus was significantly higher than that of non-vegetarian menus. Contrarily, the non-vegetarian menus had a higher number of broths and side dishes than vegetarian menus. Menus comprising grains, meats·fishes·eggs, vegetables·beans, fruits, and dairy products constituted 39.2% of vegetarian and 50.1% of non-vegetarian menus. The dietary diversity score was 4.3 for the vegetarian menu and this was significantly lower than 4.5 for the non-vegetarian menus. In terms of nutrient content and the index of nutritional quality, the vegetarian menus had significantly higher levels of vitamin A and calcium than the non-vegetarian menus. However, the protein and vitamin B₁ levels were lower in the vegetarian menus. Our results suggest a need to develop balanced vegetarian menus and expand education to improve awareness, acceptance, and consumption of vegetables among school-age children.