• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.35 no.4
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• pp.672-679
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• 2005

Introduction. Cardiovascular disease has the potential to lead to sudden in-flight incapacitation and permanent grounding. The aims of this study are to examine the relationships between lifestyle, job stress and blood lipid levels of male aircrew personnel of a Korean airline and to identify which factors influence their hyper-lipidemia. Methods. Two hundred sixteen male aircrew personnel completed a questionnaire by self-report and consented to participate in the study. The questionnaire collected data related to job stress, life style, serum cholesterol levels and general characteristics of the aircrew. The cholesterol levels of the subjects were collected from their most recent health check-up records. Subjects were divided into two groups (the desirable group and the risk group) based on their serum cholesterol level, 200 mg/dl. Results. Mean age and marital status were significantly different between the two groups. More subjects in the risk group had habits of eating high lipid foods, while more subjects in the desirable group exercised more frequently than the risk group. In logistic regression analysis, after controlling age and marital status, types of working situation (domestic duty or international duty, odds ratio=.390, p=.018), diet (odds ratio=.429, p=.037), and exercise (odds ratio=.320, p=.055) were influencing factors on aircrew's serum cholesterol lev-els. Conclusions. The cholesterol level of aircrew personnel is closely related to their lifestyle, such as lipid diet and exercise. The type of work situations, e.g. staying in an airplane for long periods of time or staying abroad, may influence these diet patterns and exercise habits.

• Korean Journal of Health Education and Promotion
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.23-42
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• 1998

The purpose of this study is to show that, before registration of chronic degenerative diseases and enforcing management system in health centers, the management of hypertension could achieved comprehensively and continuously by knowing the realities of drug-taking and its related factors those who are being cared for in health centers. For one year, a questionnaire about drug-taking realities of hypertensive patient was distributed at 8 health centers in Taegu from March 24. 1997 to April 24. 1997. The questionnaires were then collected and analysed. The results are as follows: Of 691 patients, 77.4% of patient were taking medicine regularly every day. The reasons why patients weren't taking medicine every day was as follows: the blood pressure became normal(34%, the highest of the group), patients forgot(28.2%), it was difficult to buy the medicine(15.4%), there was no effect even though the patient took medicine continuously. The experience of medical treatment outside of health centers was 28.9%. The types and percentages of alternative medicine are herbs (50.5%), health food(24.5%), folk remedy(13.7%). Among them, 44.6% of patients didn't know if the medicine was effective. Medical treatment places excluding health centers was pharmacies(63.5%-the highest rate). In simple analysis, the older one was the more regularly one took the medicine, but there was no statistical relations. Of health activities, patients eating low-salt diet showed that they took the medicine regularly. Nonsmoking patients and those who experienced drug side-effect and those who doubted doctor's prescriptions and instructions showed that they took alternative, excluding modem medicine. Anti-hypertensive drug medication status according to recognition, attitude, experiences of hypertension showed that patients who thought that they should take anti-hypertensive drug during the whole life time took the medicine regularly(82.3%). The reasons for patients turning to alternatives varied. In case of having subjective symptom(34.1%), those who thought they knew the hypertension well(36.6%), they decided to use alternatives. In multiple logistic regression analysis the key statistics were as follows: The older patients, patients who ate low-salt diet, patients who thought that they should take anti-hypertensive drug during the whole life time, all showed that they took medicines regularly. And also patients who experienced drug side-effect, doubted prescriptions and instructions, and patients who had subjective symptoms, patients who thought that he knew the hypertension very well, all showed higher rate of using alternative medicine. In the future, at the health centers, to register and manage hypertension patients effectively, we must educate patients about regular drug-taking, and alternatives without doctor's prescriptions.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.48 no.4
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• pp.371-379
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• 2015

Purpose: This study was conducted to evaluate the factors influencing inadequate energy intake among Korean elderly. Methods: Our study included 1,869 elderly people (over 60 years old) who completed a dietary survey from the fifth Korean NHANES (2010). Factors that could affect the nutritional status of the elderly included age, family status, socio-economic factors (education, family income, livelihood security, employment), and health related factors (having chronic disease, functional status, diet therapy, depression, and suicidal thoughts). Energy and protein intake were assessed using the dietary intake data from 24hr recall method. Results: The percentage of people who consumed energy less than 75% of EEA for Koreans was 23.7% in men, 31.1% in women. The carbohydrate contribution to the total energy intake in the inadequate energy intake group was significantly higher than that in the adequate intake group (p < 0.05). Factors significantly related to inadequate energy intake after adjusting for age, family status, education, family income, employment, functional status, and suicidal thoughts were education (OR: 1.480 in men, 1.614 in women) and employment (OR: 1.751 in men, 1.464 in women), age 70 years or older in men (OR: 1.475), and living with family but without spouse in women (OR: 1.496). Conclusion: In summary, the results imply that energy intake of elderly would be affected by the status of social environment with aging and nutrition-related policy for Korean elderly should be based on the social status as well as health related conditions.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.41 no.2
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• pp.120-126
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• 2017

Background: The present study investigated the effect of ginseng berry hot water extract (GBx) on blood flow via the regulation of lipid metabolites and blood coagulation in rats fed a high-fat diet (HFD). Methods: Sixty rats were divided into five groups in descending order of body weight. Except for the control group, the other four groups were fed a HFD containing 45% kcal from fat for 11 wk without GBx. GBx groups were then additionally treated by gastric gavage with GBx dissolved in distilled water at 50 (GBx 50) mg/kg, 100 (GBx 100) mg/kg, or 150 (GBx 150) mg/kg body weight for 6 wk along with the HFD. To investigate the effects of GBx on rats fed a HFD, biochemical metabolite, blood coagulation assay, and histological analysis were performed. Results: In the experiments to measure the serum levels of leptin and apolipoprotein B/A, GBx treatment attenuated the HFD-induced increases in these metabolites (p < 0.05). Adiponectin and apolipoprotein E levels in GBx-treated groups were significantly higher than the HFD group. Prothrombin time and activated partial thromboplastin time were increased in all GBx-treated groups. In the GBx-treated groups, the serum levels of thromboxane $A_2$ and serotonin were decreased and concentrations of serum fibrinogen degradation products were increased (p < 0.05). Moreover, histomorphometric dyslipidemia-related atherosclerotic changes were significantly improved by treatment with GBx. Conclusion: These results suggest the possibility that GBx can ameliorate blood flow by decreasing intima-media thickness via the regulation of blood coagulation factors related to lipid metabolites in rats fed a HFD.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.1-13
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• 2010

Evidences supporting gene-environment interaction are accumulating in terms of environmental exposure including lifestyle factors and related genetic variants. One form of defense mechanism against cancer development involves a series of genes whose role is to metabolize (activation/detoxification) and excrete potentially toxic compounds and to repair subtle mistakes in DNA. The purpose of this article is to provide a brief review of the notion of gene-environment interaction, environmental/occupational carcinogens and related cancers, and previous studies of gene-environment interaction on cancers caused by exposure to carcinogenesis. With a number of studies on the interaction between lifestyle factors (e.g., smoking and diet) and genetic polymorphisms in genes involved in xenobiotic metabolism and DNA repair excluded, only several studies have been conducted on the interactive effects between polymorphisms of CYPs, GSTs, ERCCs, XRCCs and environmental/occupational carcinogens such as vinyl chloride, benzo[a]pyrene, and chloroform on carcinogenesis or genotoxicity. Future studies may need to be conducted with sufficient number of subjects and based on occupational cohorts to provide useful information in terms of advanced risk assessment and regulation of exposure level.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Fundamentals of Nursing
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.168-178
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• 2012

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to compare self-care behavior, diabetes-related stress and stress coping style among 3 blood glucose control groups (good, inadequate, and poor blood glucose control groups). Methods: Participants were 102 type 2 diabetic patients (good group: 41, inadequate group: 31, poor group: 30). Data were collected from Feb 19 to Mar 24, 2010 and were analyzed using Chi-square, Fisher's exact test and ANCOVA with SPSS/WIN 12.0. Results: Using ANCOVA with frequency of admission, and illness duration as covariates, significant differences were found among the 3 groups in self-care behavior (total score) and the exercise subscale. Using ANCOVA significant differences were found among 3 groups in diabetes-related stress (total score), emotional burden subscale and regimen distress subscale. Using ANCOVA no difference in stress coping was found among the 3 groups, but there was a significant difference in the problem-oriented coping subscale. Conclusions: Self-care behavior, diabetes-related stress, and stress coping style are factors influencing blood glucose control. The results of this study suggest that for improving blood glucose control, self care education program focused on diet and exercise in addition to stress management program for promoting problem oriented coping capability are recommended.

• Korean Journal of Health Education and Promotion
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• v.29 no.5
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• pp.1-12
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• 2012

Objectives: Dietary modifications are common treatment strategies for adults with metabolic syndrome, but it is unclear how often these individuals read food labels. The objective of this study was to examine if adults with metabolic syndrome read food labels when buying packaged foods and to determine factors related to label use. Methods: From the database of the Fifth Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey(KNHANES-V), 1,335 adults with metabolic syndrome and 3,696 those without were selected. Data were analyzed using frequency distributions, $X^2$ test and multiple logistic regression with the SPSS win 18.0 program. Results: Adults with metabolic syndrome read food labels less than individuals without it when they purchase packaged foods(12.5% vs 29.0%). Among those without metabolic syndrome, food label use was significantly higher among participants who were women, younger, educated, and trying to control weight. Conclusions: Strategies to use food label as a diet management tool for metabolic syndrome are needed.

• Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.73-76
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• 2012

More and more children are becoming obese and overweight due to several factors that include a high energy density in the diet (a high fat intake) and low energy expenditure. Consequently childhood obesity is becoming a significant health problem. Fat tissue releases many cytokines such as resistin, tumor necrosis factor-${\alpha}$, leptin, interleukin-6. These adipocytokines induce obesity-related insulin resistance. Insulin resistance is a key component of obesity-related metabolic problems such as hypertension, type 2 diabetes mellitus, dyslipidemia, non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, acanthosis nigricans and polycystic ovarian syndrome. This review article focused on insulin resistance and its related metabolic diseases.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.43 no.4
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• pp.292-300
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• 2010

Objectives: This study attempted to explore the aging phenomena that now characterize much of Korean society, and assessed issues associated with the life satisfaction experienced during the process of aging. Methods: By employing the National Survey on the State of Life and the Desire for Welfare of the Elderly, 2004 in South Korea this study attempted to identify the factors that determine subjective life satisfaction among the elderly. The data utilized herein consisted of 3278 elderly people aged 65 years or older, from 9308 households. Results: The results of analysis from the final model after the introduction of 19 variables in 8 factors showed statistically similar explanatory power in men (adj. $R^2=0.320$) and in women (adj. $R^2=0.346$). We found that economic condition was the most influential factor in both men (B = 0.278) and women (B = 0.336) except perceived health condition variables. The second most influential variable in life satisfaction was health checkups in men (B = 0.128) and degree of nutritional diet in women (B = 0.145). Those who had experience with chronic diseases also reported significantly lower perceived life satisfaction and this was particularly true of women. Conclusions: The aging society requires an understanding of the lives of elderly individuals. This study explored factors associated with life satisfaction in old age by using a life satisfaction model. The success of an aging society begins with an accurate understanding of the elderly, and thus political attention will need to be focused on this matter.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.39 no.8
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• pp.773-785
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• 2006

Vitamin E in the body system plays an important role in preventing chronic diseases by decreasing the oxidative stress by free-radicals. However, there are not enough researches on analyzing the primary factors affecting vitamin E levels in the blood in Korean adults. Therefore, the purpose of this research was to examine blood tocopherol levels and the primary factors affecting the status. A complete lifestyle survey was performed on 314 Korean adult men and surveyed their smoking, drinking and exercising habits. The average plasma level of ${\alpha}-\;and\;{\gamma}-tocopherol$ showed similar mutual relations with plasma total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), or low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels (p<0.001). Plasma ${\alpha}-tocopherol$ level of the subjects did not show any difference as smoking, drinking and exercising habits changed. However, ${\gamma}-tocopherol$ per TG showed much lower figure in smokers than non smokers (p < 0.05). Amongst diet factors, plasma ${\alpha}-tocopherol$ level showed negative correlations with Vitamin E intake, while ${\gamma}-tocopherol$ level showed positive correlations with Vitamin E intake. Erythrocyte superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity and plasma tocopherol showed negative correlations, and catalase activity and plasma ${\alpha}-tocopherol$ showed positive correlationship. The level of cell DNA damage of Iymphocyte and plasma ${\alpha}-\;or\;{\gamma}-tocopherol$ showed negative correlations. As a result of this research, the factors that affect Korean adult men's plasma ${\alpha}-tocopherol$ level are plasma TG, LDL-C and cell DNA damage in Iymphocyte, while the factors that affect ${\gamma}-tocopherol$ level are plasma TG, LDL-C and vitamin E intake based on multiple regression analysis. These findings implies that the level of different types of tocopherol depends on slightly different factors. A further research is needed on the factors involved in the differentiation of the types of tocopherol.