This is an overall assessment of the child nutrition survey, which was conducted, in three primary healths, care project areas of the Korean Health Development Institute, in February. August and December of 1979. Determination was made on a total of 541 rural pre-school children, aged one to six, from those project areas of Hong Cheon county, Kangwon province; Okgu county, Cheonbuk province; and Gunee county of Kyungbuk province in Korea. The following results were obtained: 1. Demographics and living conditions
Over 72% of subjects were from families having three or more children. The mean family size was 5 and nearly half of the subjects had 5, or more persons in their families. The paternal level was higher than the maternal; 94.5% of fathers in contrast to 88.3% of mothers had completed education at or above the elementary school level. About 65% of the mothers were between 25 and 34 years of age. Approximately three fourth of those families, 72.4%, had monthly incomes below 129, 000 won 2. Anthropometrics results values of height and weight of subjects were found not to be improved significantly over the Korean standard of 1975”, which was reported by the Korean pediatric association. The mean percentage of weight for height for boys 4 to 6 years old was 15. 3 to 16. 9, in contrast to 17. 7 to 17. 9 for boys of the same age group from the Yowido apartment compound in Seoul .11- n, 13)
3. Intake of nutrients
Carbohydrates provided 73. 1 to 82.5 % of total energy input, whereas fat and protein accounted for 7. 4 to 14.9 % and 10. 1 to 12 %, respectively. Thus, these data showed too high a dependence on carbohydrates for energy, compared to the Korean recommended energy contribution ratio. The dependence on carbohydrates for energy in this study was slightly above that reported for a lc-v- income groups by Choi and Kim et al. 10,11,12,13 (74.9´ to 76.2%), and was significantly higher than that observed in the upper income group from the Yowido apartment compound by Lee and Hyun et al. 16-17 (61 to 61.4%), but was similar to that observed in the rural area of Yongin country, Kyunggi province, by Mo et al. 111) (79. 7 to 83.8%). The energy intake of children, excluding 1-year olds, was 61.5 to 69% of the requirement, and mean protein intake only met 52.2 to 57.6% of the requirement, far below the requirement. The contribution of animal proteins to total protein was only 17. 4 to 23.4%. Thus, the protein nutrition of the subjects was proven to be inadequate quantitatively as well as qualitatively. The animal proteins ware mostly provided from low cost fish and clams. Mean daily fat intake was as low as 8. 5 to 10.6 grams, and 40 to 59.3% of this was derived from vegetable sources. Low intake of calcium, iron and riboflavin was also found.
4. Hematologic Findings
Mean hemoglobin value was 11.1 to 12gm/100mL, and 27.9% of subjects were below the borderlineindicative of anemia according to the criteria of the WHO; by contrast, anemia was found among only 3.2% of young children in the Yowido apartment compound. Mean hamatocrit value was 35. 0 to 37.7%, and 33. 0% of subjects were below acceptable level. Anemia among children of a low income group of Seoul, reported by Tchai et al. 14) (up to 55.6%), was higher than that observed in this study, according to the criteria of the WHO.
5. Weaning practices
About 72% of the subjects ware breast-fed before introduction of supplementary foods. This was slightly higher than for those living in the low-income area of Seoul and significantly higher than those a of the upper income area, of Seoul. Onset of supplementary feeding before the age of 6 months was 20.2%, and between the ages of 7 and 12 months was 57.2%. 22.65 of subjects began to be introduced to the supplementary -foods after 12 months, Only 23.45 of mothers completely terminated breast feeding within 12 months, and 32.5,% terminated within 13 to 18 months. Nearly one third of the subjects continued until the child is 19 to 24 months old, although 14.5% continued until the child was over 2 years old, or even 3, in accordance with the arrival of the next baby. The motives for weaning were various, such as: baby wants to share other new foods from adult family meals in addition to mother´s milk (49.7%); breast milk (49.7%); breast milk secretion is not enough to feed a baby (22. 2;%); weaning seems good for baby´s health (18%); pregnancy during lactation (3.9%); doctor, relatives or neighbors encourage introduction of supplementary food (2.6%); and others The supplementary foods used most frequently at the beginning of weaning were boiled rice and rice porridge. As for methods of terminating breast-feeding, 47.8% of the subjects were naturally terminated, while .42.7° were forced to terminate by the application of medicines such as mercurochrome, iodine tincture, antiphlamine, bitter-tasting antibiotics, aspirin, analgesic spray to the mother´s nipples, although 9.55% were terminated with difficult efforts without the use of medicine.
According to the results of the assessments, authors found a clear difference of growth values and dietary patterns between rural and urban poor or urban upper income groups of Seoul. Authors wish this study could be contributed, as a reference, to develop the community health and nutrition programmes, and activities of improving the nutritional status of growing children from the low-income communities of rural and those from the urban areas.
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