Dietary and Lifestyle Factors Associated with Weight Status among Korean Adolescents from Multicultural Families: Using Data from the 2017–2018 Korea Youth Risk Behavior Surveys / 대한지역사회영양학회지

OBJECTIVES: This study investigated dietary and lifestyle factors associated with the weight status among Korean adolescents in multicultural families.METHODS: This cross-sectional study analyzed 1,751 multicultural families' adolescents who participated in the 2017–2018 Korea Youth Risk Behavior Surveys. Information on dietary and lifestyle factors was self-reported using a web-based questionnaire and this information included breakfast and foods consumption, perceived health status, alcohol drinking, smoking, physical activity, and weight control efforts. Body mass index (BMI) was calculated based on the self-reported height and body weight (kg/m²). Weight status was assessed according to the 2017 Korean National Growth Chart: underweight (weight-for-age <5(th) percentiles), overweight (85(th)≤ BMI-for-age <95(th) percentiles), and obese (BMI-for-age ≥95(th) percentiles). Multiple logistic regression analysis was performed to examine the dietary and lifestyle factors associated with weight status after adjustment for covariates.RESULTS: Among Korean adolescents from multicultural families, the prevalence of overweight/obesity was 20.9%, whereas about 7% of adolescents were underweight. The weight status did not show differences according to gender, school level, area of residence, and household income. Compared to adolescents who did not have breakfast during the previous week, those who had breakfast 3–4 days/week and ≥5 days/week had a 42% (p=0.021) and a 37% (p=0.009) lower prevalence of overweight/obesity, respectively. The adolescents who frequently consumed carbonated soft drinks (≥5 times/week) showed an odds ratio (OR) of 1.69 (95% CI=1.01–2.83) for overweight/obesity relative to those adolescents who did not consume carbonated soft drinks. The OR of being underweight for adolescents who ate fast food ≥3 times/week was 1.97 (95% CI=1.04–3.71) compared to those adolescents who had not eaten fast food during the previous week.CONCLUSIONS: Dietary and lifestyle factors were associated with overweight/obesity as well as underweight among Korean adolescents in multicultural families. Our findings could be used to design and provide nutrition interventions for this specific population.

Comparison of Clinical Features among Children of Multicultural Families, Ethnic Koreans and Native Koreans

PURPOSE: To explore whether genetic and environmental factors influenced ophthalmic disease among children of multicultural families, ethnic Koreans, and native Koreans. METHODS: In this retrospective study, 120 patients who visited the pediatric ophthalmology clinic of a university hospital were included. They were equally divided into three groups: a multicultural group, an ethnic Korean group, and a native Korean group. Parental nationalities, age, gender, chief complaint, visual acuity, refractive error, diagnosis at the initial visit and the extent of compliance with treatment were analyzed. RESULTS: Of the multicultural group, 14 (35%) of 40 patients were Chinese immigrants, and constituted the most common subgroup. None of the age at initial visit, gender, the prevalence of refractive error, or amblyopia status differed significantly among the three groups. In the multicultural and native Korean groups, the proportions of abnormal eye positioning as the chief complaint were higher than that of the ethnic Korean group (p = 0.005). The most common diagnosis in the two former groups was strabismus. Myopia was the most common diagnosis in the ethnic Korean group. The prevalence of strabismus in the multicultural group (55%) was significantly higher than that in the native Korean group (30%) and the ethnic Korean group (20%) (p = 0.003). The prevalence of strabismus in the multicultural group was significantly higher than in the other groups (p = 0.003). However, we found no significant difference in strabismus subtype among the three groups. In the general family group, the extent of loss to follow-up was significantly higher than in the other groups (p = 0.002). CONCLUSIONS: The chief complaint, the prevalence of ophthalmic disease, and the compliance rate differed significantly among the three groups. Both genetic and environmental factors may have played a role.

Relationship between School Violence and Depressive Symptoms among Multicultural Families' Offspring in South Korea

The aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of school violence on depressive symptoms among the offspring of multicultural families in South Korea. Data from the National Survey of Multicultural Families 2012, conducted by the Korean Women's Development Institute and Statistics Korea, were used in this study. Complex samples logistic regression was performed to determine the effect of school violence on depressive mood. The survey participants were 3999 students between the ages of 9 and 24. Of the participants, 22.1% reported experiencing depressive symptoms and 9.1% reported experiencing school violence within the last year. School violence was a strong risk factor (OR=5.142, 95% CI=4.067–6.500) for depressive symptoms after adjusting for personal, familial and school factors. School violence is a serious contributor to depressive mood among the offspring of multicultural families. There is a significant need to monitor school violence among this vulnerable group.

Dietary Behavior of Marriage Migrant Women according to Their Nationality in Multicultural Families / 대한지역사회영양학회지

OBJECTIVES: Nowadays, the multicultural families make up significant portion of Korean population and communities. Successful re-settling in a new country can be difficult, particularly when there are disparities in dietary behavior compared to home country. The objective of the study was to investigate the dietary behavior of marriage migrant women according to their nationality in multicultural families. METHODS: The primary research was conducted targeting 94 marriage migrant women who came from China (40.4%), Vietnam (26.6%), and other countries except for Japan (33.0%). We investigated their dietary behavior, such as eating attitude and food choice behavior for Korea acculturation. We also studied dietary behavior among 14 selected subjects who had high level of integration and assimilation acculturation patterns by administering the Focus Group Interview (FGI). RESULTS: The multicultural families had more integration acculturation patterns, which could have been influenced by their nationality. Vietnamese origin has the highest cultural adaptation as marginalization pattern. The common types of Korea acculturation were integration (3.03 +/- 1.08), separation (3.10 +/- 0.59), marginalization (3.10 +/- 0.58), followed by assimilation (2.84 +/- 0.51). There were significant differences in the four types of acculturation by marriage immigrant women's country of origin (p<0.05). According to dietary behavior, 'eliminating hunger' was the most important value in a meal. Chinese marriage migrant women, who had higher level of food intake attitude significantly, also considered 'being healthy' an important value. Regarding food choice behavior, Vietnamese had lowest frequency of homeland food intake. Most of marriage immigrant women were satisfied with the Korean food, and need for education was very high with interest for cooking, good nutrition, and managing their children's dietary life. CONCLUSIONS: Coping with a change in dietary behavior is one of the biggest transitional difficulties, and family members may need support to find their familiar food items and to continue their cultural food choice behavior in the local areas. Further researches with quantitative and qualitative analysis are needed to understand the effect of dietary behavior for acculturation in multicultural families.

Comparative Study of Adolescents' Mental Health between Multicultural Family and Monocultural Family in Korea

OBJECTIVES: With the observation of factors influencing depression, self-reported happiness, self-reported stress and suicidal attempt, this study compared and evaluated the mental health of adolescents from multicultural families and monocultural families in Korea. METHODS: This study compared the characteristics of adolescents from multicultural and monocultural families based on the analysis of data of The Tenth Korea Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey and analyzed the factors influencing adolescent depression, self-reported happiness, self-reported stress and suicidal attempt. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in the levels of depression, self-reported happiness, and self-reported stress between adolescents from multicultural and monocultural families. However, suicidal ideation and suicidal attempt were significantly higher in adolescents from multicultural families. CONCLUSION: There was no significant difference between the mental health of adolescents from multicultural and monocultural families. Because depression is the greatest factor for suicidal attempt, and violence has stronger relationship with depression of adolescents from multicultural families, further study is needed to prevent this trend.

Oral health beliefs and cultural specificity in multicultural families / 대한구강보건학회지

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to evaluate the oral health beliefs and cultural specificity of multicultural families. METHODS: Subjects were 179 adults from multicultural families living in Gwangjin-gu, Seoul. The surveys and interviews were performed between June and November 2014 in the subjects' native languages (English, Chinese, Vietnamese, and Korean). The surveys were conducted using a self-administration method and a face-to-face interviewing method with the assistance of translators. RESULTS: Perceived barrier of oral health belief scores were higher in Vietnamese and Korean spouses than those from other countries (P<0.05). Cultural specificity scores were highest among the Japanese and lowest among the Vietnamese (P<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Multicultural families showed different oral health beliefs and cultural specificities. Therefore, future oral health care programs for multicultural families should consider cultural differences and adaptations.

Utilization of dental care among mothers and children from multicultural families / 대한구강보건학회지

OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to identify the status of dental care utilization among mothers and children from multicultural families and analyzing the related factors. METHODS: The subjects in this study were 131 mothers from multicultural families and 175 mothers from Korean (control) families who were selected by convenience sampling from the city of Nonsan. The dental care utilization among mothers and children from multicultural families and mothers and children from Korean families were compared. A questionnaire survey was conducted using the self-administration method for mothers from Korean families and by a face-to-face interviewing method for mothers from multicultural families. RESULTS: The proportion of subjects who visited the dentist's office in the past year was not different between the two groups of mothers. However, this proportion was lower in children from multicultural families than those from Korean families. The factors that influenced the visit to dental clinics were age and spouse's age among multicultural mothers and age, spouse's age, personal perceptions about oral health, and oral health concerns among Korean mothers. The factors that influenced dental clinic visits were mother's career, household income, education level of the mother, children's age, mother's dental clinic visits, mother's perception of children's oral health among multicultural children and father's age, marriage duration of parents, children's age, mother's dental clinical visit, and the mother's concerns about children's oral health among Korean children. CONCLUSIONS: Multicultural children visit the dental clinic a lot less than Korean children. Social economic factors such as household income, education level affect the use of dental clinic services by multicultural families.

Food adaptation and nutrient intake of female immigrants into Korea through marriage

The purpose of this study was to investigate Korean food adaption, eating behavior and dietary intakes of married female immigrants by age, number of residence years in Korea and level of income. The survey included 67 female marriage immigrants attending the Korean language class at the multicultural family support center within the northern part of Kyonggi province from October 2010 to July 2011. General characteristics, Korean dietary life adaptation, and eating behavior were collected and dietary intakes were assessed using 24-hour recall. The home countries with regards to all subjects were Vietnam (40.3%), China (23.9%), Japan (11.9%), Philippines (7.0%), and Mongolia (3.0%). Total energy intake was 1432.5kcal and there were significant differences in nutritional intake concerning vitamin B1 and vitamin B2 by age (p < 0.05). More than 50% of subjects did not meet estimated average requirements for calcium (56.7%), zinc (52.2%), vitamin C (55.2%), and folic acid (76.1%). Food adaptation scores were significantly correlated with general characteristics (age, residence year, drinking alcohol and acquisition of nationality), total scores of eating behavior, and nutritional intake (energy, protein, fat, fiber, calcium, phosphorus, sodium, potassium, niacin, vitamin E, and zinc). These results might suggest that the better their Korean food adaptation, the more desirable their eating behavior and nutritional status.

Current Complementary Feeding and Maternal Nutritional Knowledge in Multicultural Family: Compared to the Korean Survey / 대한소아소화기영양학회지

PURPOSE: To evaluate current complementary feeding and maternal nutritional knowledge of a multicultural family in Korea. METHODS: Foreign mothers of babies aged 9~24 months, who visited pediatric clinics or attended a meeting on a multicultural family party between December 2010 and April 2011, were asked to fill out questionnaires. Data from 146 questionnaires were analyzed. RESULTS: Complementary food was introduced at 4~7 months in 78% of babies. The following were the sources of information on complementary feeding: friends (34%), relatives (27%), books/magazines (19%), multicultural family educational support center (8%), mass media (4%), and hospitals (3%). The cases of complementary food introduction after 8 months (21% vs. 10%, p<0.001), initial use of commercial food (26% vs. 6%, P<0.001) and initial use of bottle feeding (15% vs. 3%, p<0.001) were more frequent compared to the 2009 Korean survey. Mothers agreeing with the following suggestions were relatively fewer: feeding minced meat from 6~7 months (61%), No mixed cereal powder as complementary food (61%), feeding egg white after 12 months (63%), no adding salt or sugar to the complementary food (64%), bottle weaning before 15~18 months (66%) and considering formula better than soy milk (68%). CONCLUSION: Complementary feeding practices of multicultural families showed many points of improvement compared with the 2009 Korean survey. Pediatricians should make more of an effort to consult with families of multicultural infants about nutrition and complementary feeding. Also, the government and the pediatrics academy need to institute policies to support the nutrition of multicultural infants.

Intrahousehold discrepancy regarding food insecurity within intermarried couples of Vietnamese wives and Korean husbands in South Korea

Our previous studies have demonstrated the inadequate nutritional status of Vietnamese female marriage immigrants in Korea. Major possible reasons include food insecurity due to economic problems as well as a lack of adjustment to unfamiliar Korean foods and limited access to Vietnamese foods; however, no study has investigated food insecurity among such intermarried couples. This study was performed to investigate the prevalence of food insecurity in Korean-husband-Vietnamese-wife couples and to determine whether they exhibit an intrahousehold discrepancy regarding food insecurity. A cross-sectional analysis of the Cohort of Intermarried Women in Korea study was performed with 84 intermarried couples. Among the 84 Vietnamese immigrants, 48.8% and 41.7% had food insecurity due to economic problems and a lack of foods appealing to their appetite, respectively. There was a marked discrepancy in reporting food insecurity between Vietnamese wives (22.6-38.1%) and their Korean husbands (6.0-15.5%). Vietnamese wives were five and two times more food-insecure due to economic problems and no foods appealing to their appetite, respectively, than their Korean spouses. A follow-up study is needed to investigate the causes of this discrepancy and ways of reducing food insecurity among female marriage immigrants living in low-income, rural communities.

Nutrition Education for Female Immigrants in Multicultural Families Using a Multicultural Approach: In-depth Interviews with Female Immigrants and Nutrition Education Professionals

The purpose of this study was to investigate dietary behaviors and nutritional knowledge among immigrant women in multicultural families. In addition, this study reveals a necessity for nutrition education, which is apparent to both immigrant women living in multicultural families as well as nutrition education experts. The survey was conducted with 30 immigrant women within multicultural families in Seoul. The dietary behaviors of the women were significantly different by their period of residence. The longer they had resided in Korea, the higher their dietary behavior score. However, there was no significant difference in nutrition knowledge by their period of residence. This study also conducted in-depth personal interviews with 8 immigrant women who lived in Seoul, and with 4 nutrition education experts. These interviews were performed to provide profound insights regarding the content and means of nutrition education for immigrant women. Nutrition education for immigrant women living in multicultural families should proceed at a basic level in terms of language and content, using bilingual (Korean and their native language) education materials. Education topics and content need to be developed differently according to the level of Korean comprehension and period of residence in Korea. Also, this multicultural approach should be adapted when planning nutrition education since immigrant women have various acculturation levels, and the content and means of education should be adjusted to these acculturation levels. Management after nutrition education is necessary for immigrant women who do not have sufficient understanding of the Korean language. Practical educational methods such as real cooking practices and food purchasing simulations must be developed. Finally, the results suggest that the government needs to establish a systematic plan for nutrition education among immigrant women living in multicultural families. Policy support such as training nutrition educators on multicultural individuals residing in Korea is necessary for active and effective nutritional education.

Analysis of the Dietary Life of Immigrant Women from Multicultural Families in the Daegu Area

The purpose of this study was to suggest an educational direction to aid in formulating a dietary life that is suited to Korea's multicultural families. This was achieved by analyzing the dietary life of immigrant women from multicultural families in Daegu. The study was carried out with 94 immigrant women form multicultural families who were served by public health center A (20 women), public health center B (47 women) and public health center C (27 women). Their home countries were China (55.3%), Vietnam (37.2%), Philippines (3.2%), Japan (2.1%), Uzbekistan (1.1%) and Thailand (1.1%). When the scores of their dietary balance were compared on the basis of the time they have been in Korea (Less than 1 year, 1~3 years, more than 3 years), we found that the score of immigrant women who stayed for less than 1 year was higher than those who stayed for more than 3 years (p<0.05) in terms of their intake of meats, fishes, potato, calcium, and carbohydrate. When subjects were asked about Korean food they wanted to learn how to cook, 30 different types of food were selected and 95.5% of the respondents wanted to learn in detail how to cook Korean food. The place most suitable for them to learn cooking was college (30.3%), while the house of their husband (2.2%) was lowest. Therefore, it seems that a college, public health center or welfare center are good places for immigrant women from multicultural families to participate in an education program that is designed to teach them how to cook Korean food.