The purpose of this study was to provide basic information on the development of nutrition education programs to improve the mealtime behavior of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) by investigating the mealtime behavior and food preferences of children with ASD through the perception of special education teachers. Surveys were given to 108 special education teachers in special education schools in Korea regarding the demographic characteristics, nutrition education support needs, mealtime behavior, and food preferences of children with ASD. Most of the special education teachers responded that nutrition education in special schools had not been conducted properly and nutrition education for ASD children is necessary. Mealtime behavior analysis classified the behavior into three clusters: cluster 1, ‘less problematic mealtime behavior’; cluster 2, ‘general feature of autism’; cluster 3, ‘difficulty in self-directed diet’. The age, eating habits, and food preferences were different according to each mealtime behavior cluster. Therefore, it will be necessary to develop a nutrition education program based on the characteristics of mealtime behavior.

This study examined the factors influencing the purchase intention of meat substitutes. A survey was conducted on 589 consumers in Korea (297 people) and China (292 people). The perception of meat substitute foods was lower in Korean consumers than in Chinese consumers, but there was no significant difference. The purchase intention of meat substitute foods was lower in Korean consumers than in Chinese consumers (p<0.01). Korean consumers’ perception of meat substitute foods was higher in males than in females (p<0.01). The purchase intention of meat substitute foods also showed the same trend (p<0.001). Chinese consumers’ perception of meat substitute foods was higher in males than in females. The overall purchase intention of meat substitute foods was significantly higher in males than in females (p<0.05). The perception of meat substitute foods by Korean consumers’ was higher in their 40s and 50s than in their 20s and 30s. The purchase intention of meat substitute foods was also high in their 40s and 50s (p<0.01). On the other hand, the perception of meat substitute foods by Chinese consumers’ was higher in their 20s and 30s than in their 40s and 50s (p<0.01). The purchase intention of meat substitute foods also showed the same trend (p<0.01). Korean consumers’ perception of meat substitute foods had a significant positive effect on the purchase intention of meat substitutes (p<0.001). Chinese consumers’ perception of meat substitute foods also had a significant positive effect on the purchase intention of meat substitute foods (p<0.001). Overall, food technology neophobia has a significant negative effect on the purchase intention of meat substitutes (p<0.05).

This study evaluated the perception, consumption behavior, and optional attributes of Korean, Chinese, and U.S. consumers of energy bar products. Data were compared and analyzed by surveying 300 consumers in each country. Significant differences were observed in preference for energy bars according to their nationality, in the order China, the U.S., and Korea. Perception of taste, types and dietary suitability of the products ranked lower for Korean consumers, as compared to consumers of the United States and China. The order dietary fiber, protein, and calcium were the sought-after nutritional requirements of the products. The demand for protein was significantly higher in the U.S. Calcium demand was low in the United States and China, but was very high in Korea, which could be attributed to the low calcium intake of Koreans. Other optional attributes which were closely associated with the purchase and re-purchase decision, included price, taste and delivery period. All three factors were recognized as important options in Korea, whereas awareness of packaging/ appearance and brand was not. The taste, nutrients and price in the U.S. ranked high as important optional attributes, while the packaging, external and expiration dates were recognized as low. Unlike Korea and the U.S., important optional attributes for Chinese consumers were determined in the order expiration date, taste, and nutrients, and showed low perception for packaging, appearance, weight, counts, and prices. Evaluating the preference for the main and secondary ingredients, Koreans preferred nuts over grains, Americans preferred dried fruits over nuts, and Chinese preferred nuts and grains; both Korean and American consumers had low preference for dried vegetables. The preference for chocolate was low in Korea and China, whereas preference for jelly was high in China as compared to Korea and the U.S. The intention of purchasing energy bars was significantly lower in Korea than in the U.S. and China. A variety of nutritious functional bars have recently been distributed and sold in Korea, but they are mostly produced in the U.S., which is the largest producer and consumer worldwide. Taken together, results of this study indicate that the demand for nutritional enhancement and preferred materials vary according to the nationality. Hence, it is necessary to develop products that reflect these criteria. Further research is required to analyze the relationship between preference and consumption behavior for each material product developed in the future.

This study examined the eating habits and preferences of foods according to the age of children with autism spectrum disorders and identified the nutritional needs of parents to support their healthy eating habits and provide basic data for the development of educational programs. A survey of 100 parents of children with autism spectrum disorders was conducted on their children’s snack intake, food preferences, and parents’ nutrition education needs. As a result, there were four times more boys than girls, and the body mass index differed according to age (p<0.001). Most children ate snacks more than once a day, and parents found that they wanted to develop nutritious snacks that could replace high-protein, low-calorie meals with the minimal use of additives. For the food preference, there was a significant difference in grains and starches, vegetables/seafood and fruits, milk and dairy products (p<0.05), fats and sugars, and Korean fermented pastes (p<0.01) between the two age groups. Regarding whether nutrition education was required, many parents had a high demand for nutrition education (4.24±0.70), and the intention to participate was 3.62±1.09. The most important content to be dealt with in parent education was ‘Inducing a change in bad eating habits and behaviors’, which was the highest (63%), and mostly face-to-face education was preferred. In conclusion, young children require diet education, and older children need to focus on weight control and obesity.

This study aims to classify parents by considering important factors in the management of foodservice for children. An offline survey was conducted by enrolling 583 Korean parents whose children attended public or private kindergartens in Seoul. The important factors required for managing foodservice for children are meal service resources, menu management, and food allergy. Considering these factors, parents were grouped into 3 clusters: the allergy important group, environment important group, and high concern group. Evaluation of the demographic characteristics revealed a significant difference between clusters with respect to type of kindergarten. Parents perceived that a private kitchen is more required than a private dining room, and perceptions about the need for a private kitchen and dining room were significantly different among the clusters. Furthermore, the results reveal significant differences between clusters, when considering the need to support meal service. Therefore, the government needs to consider characteristics of the parent cluster if they plan to support the kindergarten foodservice. We believe that this study can be used as supportive data to establish a working policy.

The aim of this study is to identify the value structure of active seniors for noodles. Noodles are the secondly most preferred and familiar food in Korea, followed by rice. And noodles also have a variety of tastes/flavors and even a variety of ceremonial characteristics. The necessity of offering proper food to seniors has recently increasing because Korea becoming an aged society. This study conducted 1:1 in-depth interviews with 30 active senior participants using the soft laddering technique, which is based on the means-end chain theory. The Implication Matrix and HVM were derived from performing content analysis. The active seniors mainly consider the ‘taste’, expecting to obtain the ‘satisfying taste’, and pursuing the ‘family affair’, ‘pleasure’, and ‘self-satisfaction’. The results of this study indicated that the taste is the most important attribute and the active seniors consider their family as well as the pleasure and satisfaction of their own. Male seniors mainly pursue the ‘pleasure’ and ‘self-satisfaction’ by satisfying their taste through considering ‘taste’ and ‘familiarity’. But female seniors mainly pursue the ‘family affair’ by ‘satisfying taste’ through considering ‘taste’. These results can be used as a basic data for developing noodle products for the elderly. This study will also contribute to the development of special care food and product concepts for the silver generation.

This study aimed to develop processed foods that can be tailored to the tastes of consumers in countries to enter domestic and foreign markets utilizing fresh Korean pears, in which the consumption is decreasing. A survey was also conducted on three types of samples (pear jelly, pear rice cake, and pear muffin). As a result, both Korean and Chinese women aged in their 20s preferred pear muffins the most among the pear products evaluated. Pear jelly and rice cake were preferred by Chinese consumers because of their sweet taste (p<0.05). Pear rice cakes were preferred because of their texture (p<0.05). Pear muffins were not significant in all items except for odor/flavor and sweetness, but Korean consumers had a high preference for them and showed a significant preference for colors (p<0.05). Pear muffins were most familiar to both Korean and Chinese consumers showing a high willingness to purchase. An analysis of the preference inducement factors of consumers in each country of the three processed foods containing pears using Check-All-That-Reply (CATA) showed that the consumers of both countries preferred the ‘pear odor/flavor’ characteristics of pear jelly, and that pear rice cakes were preferred by Chinese consumers compared to Korean consumers. Pear muffins were preferred by Korean consumers. Overall, pear muffins are the product expected to be most suitable for female consumers in Korea and China aged in their 20s.

Background: Spontaneous use of the upper extremities on the affected side of patients with stroke is a meaningful indicator of recovery and may vary by the age or dominant hand of patients. No prior study has reported changes in actual amount of use test (AAUT) and motor activity log (MAL)-28 according to age and handedness in healthy adults, and AAUT inter-rater reliability for assessment of healthy adults. Objects: This study aimed to (1) research the differences in AAUT and MAL-28 according to age and handedness in healthy adults, and (2) determine the inter-rater reliability of the AAUT. Methods: Seventy healthy adults participated in this study. The MAL-28 was assessed by dividing 61 subjects into young right-handed (n1=20), young left-handed (n2=21), and older right-handed (n3=20) groups. The AAUT was assessed by dividing 63 subjects into young right-handed (n1=25), young left-handed (n2=18), and older right-handed (n3=20) groups. Student’s t-test and the Wilcoxon signedrank test were used for statistical analysis. Results: The Amount of Use (AOU) scale values for each group showed no significant differences between age groups and handedness groups in the MAL-28 (p>.05). The AAUT AOU scale value showed significant differences regarding dominant handedness in the AAUT (p<.05), but no significant differences according to age (p>.05). (2) Inter-rater reliability of the AAUT was excellent, except few items (item 9, 11, and 12). Conclusion: Although both the MAL-28 and the AAUT measured how much participants used their dominant arms in healthy subjects, the AAUT only showed significantly higher dominant arm use in left hander than the right hander. In addition, the inter-rater reliability of the AAUT was excellent. Current results can be utilized as a basic information when clinicians develop rehabilitation strategies, and AAUT was shown to be a reliable evaluation tool for measurement of upper extremity use in Korean adults, based on the reliability demonstrated by this study.

This study was conducted to evaluate children’s purchase behavior (frequency of snack consumption and purchase) and preference for high protein snack products developed for weight control and nutritional balance. A total of 80 elementary school students (from the 3rd to 6th graders) in the Gyeonggi-do learning center were participated and 76 were used for the analysis. The most common response for liking snacks was taste (71.4%), and the most preferred types of snacks were chips (42.1%) and puff snacks (34.2%). The highest frequency of snack ingestion was 1-3 times per week (48; 63.2%), and the main purchasers were parents (65.8%). Cheese, corn and chili flavors were more preferred than the control, while yogurt taste was slightly less preferred than the control. The results of this study showed the possibility of commercialization of new protein snacks according to children’s seasoning preference and provide the insights into the snack preferences of children as main consumers.

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of health lifestyle on high protein snack selection attributes and purchase behaviors among individuals aged 20-30 with high protein snack intake. In addition, the relationship between perception, attitude, satisfaction and recommendation of high protein snacks was invested. Finally, this study aims to provide basic information for marketing high-protein snacks and customized high protein snacks. Analysis of the selection attributes most important for healthy lifestyle, revealed significant differences among all groups excluding the external seeking group (p<0.001). The free living group regarded trust as one of the most important attributes of high protein snack selection, and both the tempered control group and the low-interest group found sensation and price factor to be important. Therefore, when developing high-protein snacks, it is important to determine which attributes of the snack will be highlighted by segmenting the consumer into health lifestyles. Focusing on what ingredients are used to develop high-protein snacks and nutritional ingredients is also important when targeting a free lifestyle group as the main customer. In addition, developing snacks that do not offer depending on the protein content is important when targeting a temperate management group or a low-interest group.