ABSTRACT
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.