Comparison of Metabolic Risk Factors Based on the Type of Physical Activity in Korean Adolescents: Results from a Nationwide Population-Based Survey.

BACKGROUND: Physical activity (PA) is associated with a favorable metabolic risk profile in adults. However, its role in adolescents remains unclear. In this study, using data (2019-2021) from the 8th Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, we investigated the optimal exercise type for preventing metabolic complications in adolescents. METHODS: A total of 1,222 eligible adolescent participants (12-18-year-old) were divided into four groups as follows: aerobic exercise (AE), resistance exercise (RE), combined aerobic and resistance exercise (CE), and no exercise (NE). Daily PA was assessed using the international PA questionnaire. Blood samples were collected to measure lipid, glucose, and insulin levels. Additionally, the homeostasis model assessment for insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and triglyceride-glucose (TyG) indices were measured. Multivariate regression analysis was used to compare the metabolic risk factors across the PA groups before and after propensity score matching (PSM) adjustment for confounding variables. RESULTS: The CE group exhibited improved fasting glucose levels, lower TyG index, reduced white blood cell count, and higher high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol levels than the NE group. The RE group exhibited lower mean blood pressure, triglyceride, fasting insulin, HOMA-IR, TyG index and a reduced risk of metabolic syndrome than the NE group. The AE group had higher total and HDL cholesterol levels. In detailed comparison of the AE and RE groups, the RE group consistently exhibited favorable metabolic parameters, including lower blood pressure and total and low-density cholesterol levels, which persisted after PSM. CONCLUSION: These findings highlight the positive effects of PA on cardiovascular risk factors in adolescents. Thus, RE may have a more favorable metabolic effect than AE. Further studies are needed to validate the benefits of exercise according to the exercise type.

Association between Cigarette Smoking and Sarcopenia according to Obesity in the Middle-Aged and Elderly Korean Population: The Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2008-2011).

BACKGROUND: The definition of sarcopenia focuses on muscle mass and function. Sarcopenic obesity is the relative excess of fat tissue with decreased muscle mass. We examined the association between cigarette smoking and sarcopenia according to obesity in middle-aged and elderly Koreans. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional study of 9,385 subjects (age ≥50 years) based on data from the fourth and fifth Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (2008-2011). Smoking groups were categorized by smoking status and the number of cigarettes smoked daily. Sarcopenia was defined as weight-adjusted appendicular skeletal muscle mass of 2 standard deviations below the sex-specific mean for young adults. Obesity was defined as fat mass ≥30% for men and ≥40% for women. Subjects were categorized into three groups: sarcopenic obese (SO), sarcopenic non-obese (SNO), and normal. Multiple logistic regression analysis was performed to assess the association between smoking and SNO and SO. RESULTS: Among men, current smokers were more associated with SNO than never-smokers (adjusted odds ratio [OR], 3.34; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.09-10.26). However, there was no significant association between smoking status and SNO in women or SO in either sex. Among current smokers, moderate smokers (11-20 cigarettes/d) were more likely to be SNO (adjusted OR, 5.81; 95% CI, 1.12-30.31) and heavy smokers (>20 cigarettes/d) were more likely to be SO (adjusted OR, 9.53; 95% CI, 1.65-55.01) than light smokers (<11 cigarettes/d). CONCLUSION: In men, smoking was positively associated with SNO, and heavy smokers were more likely to be SO than light smokers.

Alcohol consumption and digestive cancer mortality in Koreans: the Kangwha Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND: Alcohol consumption is a known risk factor for cancers of the mouth, esophagus, liver, colon, and breast. In this study, we examined the association between alcohol consumption and digestive cancer mortality in Korean men and women. METHODS: A cohort of 6291 residents of Kangwha County who were aged 55 years or older in March 1985 were followed to 31 December 2005-a period of 20.8 years. We calculated the relative risks of cancer mortality with respect to the amount of alcohol consumed. Cox proportional hazard model was used to adjust for age at entry, smoking, ginseng intake, education status, and pesticide use. RESULTS: In men, the risks of mortality from esophageal cancer (relative risk [RR], 5.62; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.45-21.77) and colon cancer (RR, 4.59; 95% CI, 1.10-19.2) were higher among heavy drinkers, as compared with abstainers. The risks of mortality from colon cancer and bile duct cancer rose with increasing alcohol consumption; these trends were positive and statistically significant (P = 0.04 and P = 0.02, respectively). When participants were stratified by type of alcoholic beverage, soju drinkers had higher risks of mortality from esophageal cancer and colon cancer than makkoli drinkers. In women, the risk of digestive cancer mortality was higher among alcohol drinkers than abstainers, but this difference was not statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS: Alcohol consumption increases mortality from esophageal cancer and colon cancer in men.

Association between ginseng intake and mortality: Kangwha cohort study.

OBJECTIVE: Panax ginseng C.A. Meyer is a well-known medicinal herb in North America and Europe. The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between ginseng intake and mortality among members of the Korean population. METHODS: We followed 6282 subjects who were 55 years of age or older in March 1985 until December 31, 2003. The Cox proportional hazard regression model was used to evaluate effects of ginseng intake on mortality. RESULTS: Adjusting for age, education, occupation, drinking, smoking, self-reported chronic disease, body mass index, and blood pressure, all-cause mortality for male ginseng users was significantly lower than that for male nonusers (Hazard ratio [HR] = 0.90; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.81-0.99). However, such an association was not observed in women (HR = 1.03; 95% CI, 0.94-1.13). Cancer-specific mortality was lower in female ginseng users than female nonusers after adjustment of relevant covariates (HR = 0.80; 95% CI, 0.60-1.08). Compared to nonusers, the HR for cancer-specific mortality in women was 0.84 in infrequent users (95% CI, 0.62-1.15) and 0.61 in frequent users (95% CI, 0.32-1.14) (p for trend, 0.09), which is not statistically significant. The cancer-specific mortality was not associated with ginseng intake in male subjects (HR = 0.95; 95% CI, 0.76-1.20). Mortality caused by cardiovascular diseases was not related to ginseng intake in both men and women. CONCLUSION: The 18.8-year progressive cohort study showed that ginseng intake decreased all-cause mortality in older males, but such life prolongation effect was not shown in women.

Reemergence of the bedbug Cimex lectularius in Seoul, Korea.

A healthy 30-yr-old woman carrying an insect that had been caught in her living room visited the International Clinic at Severance Hospital, Seoul, in December 2007. The insect she brought was identified to be a nymph of a bedbug, Cimex lectularius, and her skin rashes looked typical bedbug's bites. Her apartment was investigated, and a dead body of a bedbug, cast skins, and hatched eggs were found in her rooms and neighbors' rooms in the same building. She was living in that apartment in Seoul for 9 months since she had moved from New Jersey, USA. We assume that the bedbugs were introduced from abroad, since there had been no report on bedbugs in Seoul for more than 2 decades at least. This is a report of a reemergence of the common bedbug, C. lectularius in Seoul, Korea.