Purpose: This study examined the dietary habits and nutritional status of young children in Korea. Methods: Data were collected from the 2013~2015 KNHNES (Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey) by health behavior interviews and the 24-hour dietary recall method. This study included 1,214 (445 aged 1~2 years, 769 aged 3~5 years) young children aged 1~5 years. To analyze the dietary status of young children, the general characteristics of young children and their mothers, their dietary behaviors and health factors, and nutritional status and frequently consumed foods were analyzed. Results: The starting time of bovine milk and weaning were 14~15 months and 6.2 months, respectively. Eighty two percent of young children ate breakfast 5~7 times per week while only 2.3% of them skipped breakfast. The highest percentage (35.8%) of the frequency of eating-out was 5~6 times per week. The prevalence of asthma, atopy, and allergic rhinitis was significantly higher in young children 3~5 years old than in those 1~2 years old. The subjects with lower recommended energy intake were 44.1% and 57.4% of young children 1~2 years old and 3~5 years old, respectively. Most nutrients except calcium and potassium were taken enough. For the intakes of calcium and potassium, 51% and 64% of young children 1~2 years and 3~5 years old, respectively, were taking less than the recommended calcium intake, and 79.5% and 75.5% of young children 1~2 years and 3~5 years old, respectively, did not meet the recommended potassium intake. The frequently consumed foods of young children 1~2 years old were milk, white rice, apple, curd yogurt, and egg, and those of 3~5 years old children were milk, white rice, apple, egg, and mandarin. Conclusion: The results of this study can be used to provide basic data for the nutritional education of mothers and teachers and assist in the development of sustainable dietary programs for young children.

The dietary intake of fish and fatty acid may influence the risk of asthma, yet epidemiological research remains controversial and inconclusive. We examined the association between asthma and the dietary intake of fish, seaweeds, and fat in a Korean population, aged 19 to 64 years, using the data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) 2013–2016 (n = 13,038). The prevalence of doctor-diagnosed asthma and medication prescribed asthma were 2.5% and 1.0%, respectively. The subjects with medication prescribed asthma had significantly lower consumption of seaweeds (p = 0.0110) and lower n3/n6 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) (p = 0.0275) as compared to subjects without medication prescribed asthma. Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that the odds ratio (OR) (95% confidence interval, CI) of doctor-diagnosed asthma in the highest quartile were 0.63 (0.41–0.97) and 0.66 (0.44–1.00) for fish and seaweeds respectively, compared to the lowest quartile after adjusting confounding factors. Furthermore, there were significant inverse associations between medication prescribed asthma and seaweeds [OR (95% CI) = 0.37 (0.19–0.70)], n-3 PUFA [OR (95% CI) = 0.43 (0.21–0.89)] and n3/n6 [OR (95% CI) = 0.47 (0.22–0.99)] intake after adjusting for confounding factors. These results suggest, that the higher consumption of fish and seaweed and the high ratio of n-3 to n-6 PUFA may be associated with a lower prevalence of asthma.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES The increased consumers’ interests in health and food safety have increased the demand for organic foods. Many studies have been performed on consumers’ purchase intentions for organic foods and their influencing factors, and various studies have shown that the prices of organic foods and the consumers’ willingness to pay are important influencing factors. This study examined the payment value of organic foods and agrifood consumer competency index according to the food-related lifestyles in South Korean consumers. SUBJECTS/METHODS A cross-sectional analysis was performed using the 2019 Consumer Behavior Survey for Food. A total of 6,176 participants aged 19 to 74 years (male: 2,783, female: 3,393) were included in the analysis. RESULTS Three factors were extracted by factor analysis (rational consumption-seeking type, convenience-seeking type, and health, and safety-seeking type) to explain the consumers’ food-related lifestyles. The results of cluster analysis suggested that consumers were classified into 3 food-related lifestyles as the ‘exploratory consumers’ (n = 2,485), ‘safety-seeking consumers’ (n = 1,544), and ‘passive consumers’ (n = 2,147). Exploratory consumers showed a significantly higher willingness to pay for imported organic foods ( P < 0.05). Safety-seeking consumers had a significantly higher willingness to pay for domestic organic foods ( P < 0.05). For the agrifood consumer competency index, exploratory consumers had the highest score, followed in order by safety-seeking consumers and passive consumers. CONCLUSIONS These results provide basic data in understanding consumption tendency for organic foods and agrifoods based on food-related lifestyles of South Korean consumers.

Purpose:This study was conducted to analyze food consumption behavior of women by marital status based on the 2015 consumer survey data on Food Consumption Behaviors of the Korea Rural Economic Institute. Methods: We analyzed data describing 3,312 women aged 19~75 who were the main buyers of foods in their household. The food purchase patterns, dining-out behavior, and use of food-delivery and take-out were investigated. Results: Overall, 40.5% of unmarried women shopped for food once per week and 37.4% spent 200,000~400,000 won per month. Additionally, 43.1% of married women shopped 2~3 times per week and 26.6% spent 400,000~600,000 won (p < 0.0001). Dining-out frequency and one-time cost per person of dining-out for unmarried women were higher than those for married women. With delivery/take-out food frequency, 2 time per week was the highest rate among married women (34.6%) and once per week was the highest among unmarried women (31.2%) respectively. Conclusion: The results of this study indicate food consumption behaviors and trends of Korean women by marital status. This study provides basic data that will be useful for food industries establishing marketing strategies to better meet consumer demands.