Abstract

This study was conducted to investigate the attitude to various soy foods and to estimate dietary isoflavone intake among Korean adolescents. The survey was carried out by self-administered questionnaire with 800 middle and high school students residing in urban and rural areas and 714 questionnaires were collected: resulting in 89% response rate. The dietary isoflavone intake was estimated by food frequency questionnaire developed for rapid assessment of isoflavone intake. Soybean paste, soybean curd, soy milk, bean sprouts and dambuk were recognized as nutritious and healthy food in order. Dambuk got the lowest score in taste and flavor. Bean sprouts, soybean curd and soybean paste were recognized as familiar food in order. Stuffed rice in fried soybean curd got the highest score and Miso soup got the lowest in preference. More than 50% of the subjects consumed soybean paste stew/soup and soybean curd over twice per week and 12.3% of the subjects consumed soybean over once a day. The estimated daily intake of isoflavones ranged from 0 to 227 mg, and the mean daily isoflavone intake of the subjects was 28.1 mg (16.3 mg genistein and 12.0 mg daidzein) whereas the median value of isoflavone intake was 19.7 mg. There was statistically significant relationship among Kyung Gi Do, Chung cheung Do and Seoul residents in their intake of isoflavone. The highest monthly income group consumed isoflavone more than the other groups. These results suggest that Korean adolescent perceived the soybean dishes as high quality foods but they didn't take much because of difficulty to cook or less chance to eat. Nutrition education program is needed to enhance consuming soy foods for prevention of chronic diseases related to dietary isoflavone intake. More detailed information on easy cook method of soy food is also needed.

• Keywords: soy foods; isoflavone; attitude; intake; food frequency questionnaire