Effectiveness of Center for Child-Care Foodservice Management for Menu Management and Dietary Variety / 대한지역사회영양학회지

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of Centers for Child-care Foodservice Management (CCFSM)'s support on menu management in child-care centers and kindergartens by comparing two perspectives of pre-support vs. post-support and established vs. non-established. To evaluate dietary variety, we used methods that considered both Dietary Diversity Score (DDS) and Dietary Variety Score (DVS). For surveying pre-support and post-support state by CCFSM, we collected and analyzed menus of June and September, 2012, targeting 7 CCFSM supported institutions. Meanwhile, for surveying state in CCFSM established and non-established areas, we collected and analyzed menus of June, 2012, which were implemented in institutions in CCFSM established (181 places) and non-established (106 places) areas. The results of evaluation on the dietary support by CCFSM showed that post-supporting state by CCFSM (95.3%) was significantly higher than pre-supporting state (77.2%) (p < 0.001) and established areas (87.4%) were significantly higher than non-established ones (77.2%) (p < 0.05) on 'Meeting the DRI for infant'. Evaluation of dietary variety between pre- and post-support state by CCFSM showed that post-support state (total 77.3 point) was higher than pre-support state (total 76.4 point). Evaluation of dietary variety between established and non-established areas showed that established areas (total 81.1 point) were significantly higher than non-established ones (total 77.1 point) (p < 0.001). Therefore, it is considered that dietary support service conducted by CCFSM contributes to improve variety level of diet provided by child-care centers and kindergartens.

Comparison of dietary food and nutrient intakes by supplement use in pregnant and lactating women in Seoul

This study was performed to compare the dietary food and nutrient intakes according to supplement use in pregnant and lactating women in Seoul. The subjects were composed of 201 pregnant and 104 lactating women, and their dietary food intake was assessed using the 24-h recall method. General information on demographic and socioeconomic factors, as well as health-related behaviors, including the use of dietary supplements, were collected. About 88% and 60% of the pregnant and lactating women took dietary supplements, respectively. The proportion of dietary supplements used was higher in pregnant women with a higher level of education. After adjusting for potential confounders, among the pregnant women, supplement users were found to consume 45% more vegetables, and those among the lactating women were found to consume 96% more beans and 58% more vegetables. The intakes of dietary fiber and beta-carotene among supplement users were higher than those of non-users, by 23% and 39%, respectively. Among pregnant women, the proportion of women with an intake of vitamin C (from diet alone) below the estimated average requirements (EAR) was lower among supplement users [users (44%) vs. non-users (68%)], and the proportion of lactating women with intakes of iron (from diet alone) below the EAR was lower among supplement users [usesr (17%) vs. non-users (38%)]. These results suggest that among pregnant and lactating women, those who do not use dietary supplements tend to have a lower intake of healthy foods, such as beans and vegetables, as well as a lower intake of dietary fiber and beta-carotene, which are abundant in these foods, and non-users are more likely than users to have inadequate intake of micro-nutrient such as vitamin C and iron.

Systematic review of the effect of coenzyme Q10 on antioxidant capacity while focused on evaluation of claims for health functional food / 한국영양학회지

Although the functional ingredient has been evaluated by the Korea Food and Drug Administration (KFDA) based on scientific evidence, the levels of scientific evidence and consistency of the results might vary according to emerging data. Therefore, periodic re-evaluation may be needed for some functional ingredients. In this study, we re-evaluated scientific evidence for the antioxidant activity of coenzyme Q10 as a functional ingredient in health functional food. Literature searches were conducted using the Medline and Cochrane, KISS, and IBIDS databases for the years 1955-2010 with the search term of coenzyme Q10 in combination with antioxidant. The search was limited to human studies published in Korean, English, and Japanese. Using the KFDA's evidence based evaluation system for scientific evaluation of health claims, 33 human studies were identified and reviewed in order to evaluate the strength of the evidence supporting a relation between coenzyme Q10 and antioxidant activity. Among 33 studies, significant effects for antioxidant activities were reported in 22 studies and their daily intake amount was 60 to 300 mg. Based on this systematic review, we concluded that there was possible evidence to support a relation between coenzyme Q10 intake and antioxidant activities. However, because inconsistent results have recently been reported, future studies should be monitored.