RESUMO
A reliable nutrient database is a prerequisite for accurate calculation of dietary intakes. The folate database currently available in Korea, however, is not reliable because the values were obtained from published data in other countries using ineffective methods to extract folates from the food matrix. The purpose of this study was to complement the folate database by analyzing folate content in foods using a more effective method to extract food folates (trienzyme treatment). Folate content per unit weight was highest in laver, fermented soybeans, soybean, spinach, black soybeans, crown daisy, mung beans, and quail's egg in descending order. Legumes, leafy greens, eggs, and seaweeds were rich in folate, and meats, chicken, fish, and some fruits contained less folate. Some of the analyzed values were 10 times higher than those in the currently available database. Folate values of 423 foodcodes out of 2,932 foodcodes (14.4%) in the database in the 7th revision in the Recommended Dietary Allowances for Koreans can be replaced by those analyzed in this study. Since folate values of rice and Kimchi, which are core dishes of Koreans, in the newly established database are higher than those in the current database, folate intake assessed using our data will be higher than that using the current available database. Folate content in more foods commonly consumed in Korea are needed to update the folate database. Meanwhile, folate values presented here can be used to assess dietary folate intake of the Korean population.