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Korea’s health level at a glance… Fat intake is increasing, hypercholesterolemia is on the rise
“You can prevent obesity by reducing the amount you eat and lowering your alcohol intake.”
Are our people enjoying a healthy life? To figure this out, the country conducts a national health and nutrition survey every year. Although the content of the National Health and Nutrition Survey data is complex, it can be classified into three categories (chronic disease, health behavior, and diet). By combining the three contents, we can determine not only the disease status of our people but also whether their lifestyle habits and eating habits are healthy. You can also use it as a reference to set or implement health goals for this year.
Analysis of the 2022 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data showed that Korean citizens have different health risks depending on their age. People in their 20s have problems with their eating habits, people in their 30s and 40s show undesirable health behaviors, and people in their 50s suffer from chronic diseases. If the unhealthy eating and lifestyle habits of relatively young people are neglected, the number of cases of chronic diseases when they become older is expected to increase. Health authorities also pointed out this point.
Ji Young-mi, Director of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, said, “2022 marks the third year of the COVID-19 epidemic, and there has been a change in the health level of our people as there is a gradual transition to normal life. Physical activity has continued to increase and improved since 2020, but drinking behavior has trended back to an increase. The prevalence of chronic diseases such as obesity and hypercholesterolemia still appears to be worse than before the COVID-19 pandemic. In particular, the diet of people in their 20s, health behavior in their 30s and 40s, and chronic diseases continue to increase among people in their 50s and older, so it is necessary to manage health risk factors in young adults to prevent chronic diseases.”
Chronic disease: Increased obesity in men and hypercholesterolemia in women
The overall prevalence of chronic diseases among our people has increased. In particular, obesity increased in men and hypercholesterolemia rapidly increased in women. About 48% of Korean men are obese. One in two people is obese, and men in their 30s and 40s in particular have played a role in driving up the obesity rate. The obesity rate among men in their 30s is the highest at 56%, followed by men in their 40s at 54%. The obesity rate among women is about 26%. Although obesity rates tended to decline across all ages, the obesity rate among women in their 20s was 18%, up from 16% the previous year.
The prevalence of hypercholesterolemia is higher in women at 23% than in men at 21%. About 10 years ago, this figure was around 12% for both men and women. Hypercholesterolemia occurs most often in people in their 50s and 70s in both men and women, but there is a significant difference between men and women. For men in their 50s and 70s, the proportion remains in the low 30% range, but for women, it shows a sharp increase with age, to those in their 50s (39%), 60s (53%), and 70s or older (55%).
This phenomenon is also observed in diabetes. The prevalence of diabetes is 11% in men and 7% in women. Diabetes occurs most often in people in their 50s and 70s in both men and women. However, for men in their 50s and 70s, the figure is in the low 20s, but for women, it increased steeply in their 50s (11%), 60s (16%), and 70s or older (31%). The prevalence of high blood pressure is significantly higher in men than in women. For men, it rose to 27% from the previous year, with the largest increase especially among people in their 50s (36% → 42%). The prevalence of high blood pressure in women was 17%, with no significant change observed compared to the previous year.
What is your mental health like? The prevalence of depression is 4% in men and 6% in women. It has been declining little by little over the past 10 years. The problem is the young generation. Depression among men in their 20s is 5%, the highest among all age groups, and among women in their 20s and 30s, it is 8% each, which is higher than other age groups. The number of people who consulted a specialist for mental health issues was 3% for men and 6% for women, a steady increase over the past 10 years for both men and women. Jeong Seon-jae, a professor in the Department of Preventive Medicine at Yonsei University College of Medicine, said, “Mental health indicators such as depression and suicide require expansion and promotion of mental health services for young people, such as mobile apps, in line with those in their 20s and 30s. Looking at the changes before and after COVID-19, the mental health of women is still worse than that of men, but the mental health of men in their 30s is worsening more after the COVID-19 pandemic, so attention and continuous monitoring are needed. “Although the rate of mental health counseling experience is increasing, awareness of mental health services is still low and prejudice against mental illness is high, so there is a need to continue education and promotion to emphasize the importance of early mental health treatment,” he suggested.
Considering these changes in chronic diseases, male obesity increases steadily from the 20s to the 50s, and the condition is particularly serious, with one in two people in their 30s to 50s being obese. Hypercholesterolemia begins to increase in both men and women over the age of 40, with the prevalence in women exceeding that in men. Kim Yun-jeong, a senior researcher at the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, said, “Obesity, high blood pressure, and diabetes have a high incidence in men in their 30s to 50s, and hypercholesterolemia has a high incidence in men and women of all ages. Although the level of chronic disease management has improved slightly over the past 10 years, the health behavior of people with chronic diseases tends not to improve. “In particular, the health behavior of people who are unaware of their chronic disease or who have not received treatment is poor,” he pointed out.
Health behavior: Increased binge drinking… decreased physical activity
Health behavior refers to lifestyle habits that affect health, such as smoking, drinking, and physical activity. If we look at the health behavior of our people, we can get a glimpse of why chronic diseases have worsened. First of all, smoking is steadily decreasing every year. As of 2022, the use rate of tobacco products (regular cigarettes, electronic cigarettes, etc.) is 37% for men and 7% for women.
Smoking is decreasing, but drinking is on the rise. The monthly binge drinking rate of drinking more than 7 drinks (5 or more drinks for women) at least once a month is 49% for men and 26% for women. This means that one in two men and one in three women binge drink every month. In particular, the monthly binge drinking rate is high among men in their 40s (65%) and 50s (69%), and among women in their 20s (51%) and 30s (37%). The monthly binge drinking rate among women in their 20s (51%) is higher than the average for men (49%) and has increased significantly from about 10 years ago (42%).
Drinking binge drinking more than eight times a month is called high-risk drinking. The high-risk drinking rate is quite high at 25% for men and 9% for women. In particular, among men in their 40s and 50s (33% each), this rate is higher than among all age groups, and among women, it is higher among those in their 20s (10%) and 30s (11%). Kim Gwang-gi, a professor at the Inje University Graduate School of Public Health, said, “In order to reduce alcohol consumption and the harmful effects of drinking, policies that limit the availability of alcohol must be further strengthened, such as developing public drinking guidelines, strengthening drinking warnings, regulating alcohol advertising and marketing, and restricting location and time of drinking. “He emphasized.
How much physical activity did our people practice? The aerobic exercise practice rate is 55% for men and 51% for women. Each rose by about 5 percentage points compared to 2021, but compared to 10 years ago, it actually decreased. In 2013, the aerobic exercise practice rate was 62% for men and 55% for women. Like this, the practice of drinking alcohol to the extent that it is harmful to health while not exercising is increasing compared to the past.
Walking exercise in the park ⓒSisa Journal Lim Jun-seon
Diet: Increased skipping breakfast… 30% of total energy is fat
Is our people’s diet healthy? It is often said that people should eat at least a little breakfast for their health, but the rate of men skipping breakfast is as high as 40%. In particular, the breakfast skipping rate among those in their 20s is the highest at 55%, and among those in their 30s it is 53%. The rate of men skipping breakfast has steadily increased from 25% in 2013. The rate of women skipping breakfast also increased from 23% in 2013 to 36%. Those in their 20s are also the highest at 63%.
As skipping meals increased, daily calorie intake also decreased. The number of calories men consume per day has decreased from 2370 kcal to 2088 kcal over the past 10 years. Women also fell from 1760 kcal to 1557 kcal during the same period. The ratio of nutrients that make up calories also changed. The proportion of carbohydrates in the total energy consumed per day is 58% for men and women. Instead, fat intake has increased by more than 20% over the past 10 years, reaching 26% for men and women by 2022. Protein intake is 16% for men and women respectively.
While fat intake increased, fruit and vegetable intake decreased. Over the past 10 years, the amount of fruit consumed by Koreans per day has decreased from 175g to 124g, and the amount of vegetables consumed per day has decreased from 303g to 255g. It is ideal to eat more than 500g of fruits and vegetables per day. Instead, sugar intake increased during the same period. Just looking at the daily beverage intake, it increased from 186g to 304g.
When we look at changes in our people’s chronic diseases, health behaviors, and dietary habits, it becomes clear what we need to do for our health. Kang Hee-cheol, professor of family medicine at Severance Hospital, said, “The National Health and Nutrition Survey showed that daily calorie intake has decreased, but this may not be the case in reality. In the past, we only ate rice, but these days, we eat a lot of other things, such as snacks and alcohol. If you add these things together, it can be said that daily calorie intake has increased compared to the past. The conclusion is that controlling the amount of food eaten is most necessary for modern people. You can prevent obesity by reducing the amount you eat in addition to three meals a day, such as snacks or late-night snacks, and lowering your alcohol intake. “It is also necessary to measure cholesterol regularly,” he emphasized.
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2024-01-20 03:05:00
#Dietary #habits #20s #drinking #smoking #30s #40s #chronic #diseases #50s #red #flags
