Nutr Res Pract.  2019 Dec;13(6):535-542. 10.4162/nrp.2019.13.6.535.

A comparative study on nutritional knowledge and dietary behavior between Korean and Chinese postpartum women

Affiliations
  • 1Department of Food and Nutrition, Myongji University, 116 Myongji-ro, Cheoin-gu, Yongin-si, Gyeonggi 17058, Korea. khsong@mju.ac.kr
  • 2Department of Community and Family Health, University of South Florida 13201, Florida, USA.

Abstract

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES
Proper nutrition intake during pregnancy and lactation is very important to both mothers and babies. Pregnant women should maintain proper nutritional status to restore decreased physical strength due to pregnancy and childbirth and produce breastmilk for the growth and development of the baby. Recently, the number of Chinese people living in Korea has increased as the exchange between Korea and China becomes active. It is important to provide proper nutrition education for pregnant women of both countries considering cultural differences.
SUBJECTS/METHODS
The subjects of this study were postpartum women in Gyeonggi, South Korea and Jinhua, China. The subjects were 20-45 years old less than six months after childbirth. A survey, using self-administered questionnaires, was conducted from October 2018 to January 2019. For data analysis, 221 Korean postpartum women (KPW) and 221 Chinese postpartum women (CPW) questionnaires were used.
RESULTS
KPW had significantly higher nutritional knowledge score and dietary attitude score than CPW (P < 0.001). However, overall score for dietary habits was significantly higher in CPW compared to KPW (P < 0.001). In KPW, nutritional knowledge (P < 0.01) and dietary attitude (P < 0.001) had significantly positive correlations with dietary habits. The proportions of KPW and CPW who answered that they had experience of nutrition education were 28.5% and 80.1% (P < 0.001). The score for dietary habits was lower as the hours for watching TV and using mobile phone became longer in postpartum women of both countries, with significant differences in KPW (P < 0.001) and CPW (P < 0.05). In KPW, the score for dietary habits in postpartum women with exercise experience was significantly higher than that in postpartum women without exercise experience (P < 0.001).
CONCLUSIONS
More pregnancy-related nutrition education should be provided and various and effective nutrition education programs, which not only transfer information but can be practiced in the actual life, should be developed.

Keyword

Nutritional knowledge; dietary behavior; postpartum women; Korea; China

MeSH Terms

Asian Continental Ancestry Group*
Cell Phones
China
Education
Female
Food Habits
Growth and Development
Gyeonggi-do
Humans
Korea
Lactation
Mothers
Nutritional Status
Parturition
Postpartum Period*
Pregnancy
Pregnant Women
Statistics as Topic

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