Dietary homogenization and spatial distributions of carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur isotope ratios in human hair in South Korea

• Published in: PloS one Vol. 16; no. 8; p. e0256404
• Main Authors: Lee, Han-Seul, Shim, Ji-Yu, Shin, Woo-Jin, Choi, Seung-Hyun, Bong, Yeon-Sik, Lee, Kwang-Sik
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 20.08.2021; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Adult; Analysis; Biology and Life Sciences; Carbon Isotopes - analysis; Chemical properties; Diet; Earth Sciences; Female; Food consumption; Hair; Hair - chemistry; Health aspects; Humans; Male; Medicine and Health Sciences; Nitrogen Isotopes - analysis; People and places; Physical Sciences; Properties; Republic of Korea; Research and Analysis Methods; Social Sciences; Sulfur Isotopes - analysis; Republic of Korea; South Korea
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0256404

Dietary homogenization has progressed worldwide due to westernization and the globalization of food production systems. We investigated dietary heterogeneity in South Korea by examining the spatial distribution of carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and sulfur (S) isotope ratios using 264 human hair samples. Overall, variation in isotope values was small, indicating low dietary heterogeneity. We detected differences in δ13C, δ15N, and δ34S values between administrative provinces and metropolitan cities; inter-regional differences were typically < 1 ‰. Values of δ34S were significantly lower in hair samples from inland regions relative to those from coastal locations, and a similar pattern was observed in δ15N values. Understanding geographic variation in δ34S and δ15N values in human hair is useful for provenancing humans in South Korea.