A Comparison of Dietary Intakes Between Male and Female Korean American College Students: A Two Generation Study

• Published in: College student journal Vol. 46; no. 3; pp. 665 - 679
• Main Authors: Tam, Chick, Lew, PoLong, Schwartz, Miriam, Poon, George, An, JaeYoon, Lee, Jina, Chan, Katie, Li, Kenneth, Cheung, Yuen, Luong, Duyen, Davis, Rebecca, Kim, James, Kim, Rachel, Kim, Samuel
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Project Innovation 01.09.2012; Project Innovation, Inc; Project Innovation (Alabama)
• Subjects: Acculturation; Age Differences; Analysis; California; College Students; Comparative Analysis; Demographic aspects; Dietetics; Eating Habits; Females; Food; Gender Differences; Generational Differences; Korean Americans; Males; Nutrition; Nutritional aspects; Older Adults; Parents; Recommended daily allowances; California
• ISSN: 0146-3934; 2691-3887

The purpose of this study is to observe the differences in dietary intakes between two generations, male and female Korean American college students with their respective parents, living in the Los Angeles Areas. This study compared dietary nutrient intakes between old Koreans (KO) (n=28, average age: 53.4±6.4 years, with 13 males and 15 females) and young Korean college students (KY) (n=28, average age: 23.2±3.4 years, with 15 males and 13 females) and their genders. Three-day dietary records were collected from 28 families and the data were analyzed using Nutritionist V (version 1.0), a nutritional analysis program. Korean old males and Korean old females ate similar quality of diets based on their similar percentages of Kcal consumption of poly and monounsaturated fat compared to total calories and P: S ratios (ratios of polyunsaturated fat to saturated fat). Korean old males had a mean P: S ratio of 0.6 vs. Korean old females had a mean P: S ratio of 0.7. This was, however, not the same case when comparing the younger generations with mean P: S ratios of 0.4 and 0.6, for young males and young females, respectively. The lower the value of P: S ratio represents the higher the risk of athrogenic potential. The mean for % Kcal of MUFA to total Kcal for young males was 10.2 vs. the mean for young females was 7.2. Korean young college students appeared consuming different types of food than those of their parents. With respect to differences in their dietary practices, although no statistical significant differences were observed in comparisons of some of the nutrient intakes, yet significant differences were found in some dietary nutrients among groups. This observation may reflect the fact that these surveyed subjects lived and ate together under the same roof. The results may indicate also that due to acculturation, the dietary profiles of subjects in this study were found to be a midway between citizens living in Korean and persons living their life time in the U.S. With increasing acculturation, however, young Korean males were identified as a group, consumed more total fats and saturated fats, and were associated with a higher risk of atherogenic potential of a mean P: S ratio of 0.4 when compared to their counterparts. If their dietary habits remain unchanged, to continue consuming more Westernized foods, these young Korean male college students would have undesirable health effects later in life.