Home Meal Research Articles

Sodium intake trend and current intake level by meal provision place among the citizens of Seoul.

The diversity of meal provision places has increased in recent years and sodium intake can vary depending on where meals are eaten, particularly in large cities. In this study, an analysis of the recent trends in sodium intake was performed and a comparison of sodium intake level according to meal provision place among citizens of Seoul was performed. Data from a 24-h recall dietary intake survey from the 2010-2019 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) were used in order to determine the trends in sodium intake among citizens of Seoul, aged 3-74 years old. (n = 11,811). The trend of daily sodium intake was presented in absolute amount and proportion compared to the chronic disease risk reduction intake (CDRR) for each selected characteristic. A comparison of sodium intake level according to meal provision place by sex and age groups as a total amount per meal (mg), density per meal (mg/1,000 kcal), and proportion of the daily sodium intake was performed using the 2016-2019 KNHANES. Sodium intake levels showed a downward trend from 2010-2019. The highest level of sodium intake was observed for subjects aged 30-49, and the level for males aged 30-49 was 202.8% higher than the CDRR. Results of the analysis of sodium intake per meal according to meal provision place showed that the highest sodium intake was in the order of restaurant meal (RM) > institutional foodservice (IF) > home meal (HM) > convenience food (CF). A higher sodium density (mg/1,000 kcal) was observed for IF compared with RM in most adults. Adults aged over 50 years old consumed more than half of the daily sodium in HM. Significant variation in the level of sodium intake was observed according to sex and age groups, therefore, different approaches and nutrition policies based on meal provision place are needed.

Methods for improving meat protein digestibility in older adults

This review explores the factors that improve meat protein digestibility and applies the findings to the development of home meal replacements with improved protein digestion rates in older adults. Various methods improve the digestion rate of proteins, such as heat, ultrasound, high pressure, or pulse electric field. In addition, probiotics aid in protein digestion by improving the function of digestive organs and secreting enzymes. Plant-derived proteases, such as papain, bromelain, ficin, actinidin, or zingibain, can also improve the protein digestion rate; however, the digestion rate is dependent on the plant enzyme used and protein characteristics. Sous vide processing improves the rate and extent of protein digestibility, but the protein digestion rate decreases with increasing temperature and heating time. Ultrasound, high pressure, or pulsed electric field treatments degrade the protein structure and increase the proteolytic enzyme contact area to improve the protein digestion rate.

증기 자가방출 스마트 전자레인지 포장재 적용을 위한 복합필름 특성연구

The demands for Home Meal Replacement (HMR) products are continuously increasing owing to the convenience of instant food and online food delivery. Ready-to-heat (RTH) products have received massive attention in the HMR industry because these products can be easily warmed using a microwave oven. However, the conventional microwave packaging should be opened before microwave heating to prevent bursting or food loss owing to the steam-pressure build-up inside the package. Open packaging might lead to non-uniform food heating and cross-contamination. Therefore, packaging materials that are able to release steam without opening are of interest to the HMR industry. In this study, polylactic acid(PLA)/polyethylene glycol(PEG)/nanoclay composite films were manufactured using an extrusion method as packaging materials with a smart steam-releasing function. The introduction of PEG to the PLA imparted a steam selfreleasing feature to the composite films owing to the morphology change of composite films during microwave heating. Further, PEG increased the ductility of PLA, which in turn prevented bursting caused due to the steam-pressure build-up. The uniform dispersion of nanoclay obtained by a twin-screw extrusion led to stronger mechanical properties. Therefore, the smart composite films developed here can be applied as microwave packaging materials with a self-releasing function.

Personal values, motives, and healthy and sustainable food choices: Examining differences between home meals and restaurant meals

People are increasingly eating out in restaurants, where meals tend to be higher in calories, less nutritious, and contain more meat. In this paper, we argue that differences in the motivational processes underlying people's food choices could help to explain why food choices made in restaurants are typically unhealthier and less sustainable than at home. Using online survey data from 301 Dutch participants, we compared the influence of stable personal values and transient food choice motives on the healthiness and sustainability of meals chosen in a hypothetical choice task, which was geared to the home and restaurant consumption contexts. As expected, participants opted for unhealthy and meat-based meals more often in the restaurant than the home context. Conservation values related negatively and self-transcendence values positively to choosing sustainable meals both in the home and in the restaurant context, although the relation with self-transcendence values was significantly weaker in the restaurant context. Also, taste and social eating were considered more important for choosing restaurant meals, while health was a more important motive for food choices at home. Finally, model comparisons revealed that motives were better predictors of healthy meal choices in both contexts, while the influence of values and motives on sustainable meal choices was more similar. In conclusion, the results from the present study enhance our understanding of differences between choosing home and restaurant meals by providing an account of the values and motives associated with the healthiness and sustainability of home and restaurant meal choices.

Perceived challenges and strategies to achieve Canada's Food Guide recommendation to “Cook more often”: Findings from parents of young children

Unhealthy diets are detrimental to health, but home meal preparation is associated with better diet quality. Among a sample of parents of children aged 2–12, this study aimed to 1) explore perceived challenges and strategies to meeting the 2019 Canada's Food Guide recommendation of “Cook more often”. From October 2019 to January 2020, 8 focus groups were conducted with 40 parents (73% mothers; 78% white) from Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Sessions were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. A hybrid thematic approach with inductive and deductive data analysis was used. Reported challenges included time constraints, picky eating, lacking cooking skills, high price of some fresh ingredients, school restrictions on meals at school, and the influence of children's peers on food choices, mainly unhealthy snacks. Reported strategies to mitigate some challenges included planning and preparing meals ahead of time, using technology or services to make meal planning and grocery shopping more convenient, using devices and kitchen instruments, such as Crockpot®, to make cooking faster, receiving help from spouse or child(ren), and acknowledging that foods perceived as less healthful in moderation can be included in meal preparation. These findings can help inform interventions and educational campaigns to support cooking among families with young children.

The Effect of Selection Attributes of Home Meal Replacement Meal Kit Products on Repurchase Intention through Consumer Satisfaction

The Effect of Selection Attributes of Home Meal Replacement Meal Kit Products on Repurchase Intention through Consumer Satisfaction

An Empirical Investigation of Personalized Recommendation and Reward Effect on Customer Behavior: A Stimulus–Organism–Response (SOR) Model Perspective

With the continuous growth in the Home Meal Replacement (HMR) market, the significance of recommender systems has been raised for effectively recommending customized HMR products to each customer. The extant literature has mainly focused on enhancing the performance of recommender systems based on offline evaluations of customers’ past purchase records. However, since the existing offline evaluation methods evaluate the consistency of products on the recommendation list with ones purchased by customers from the test dataset, they are incapable of encompassing components such as serendipity and novelty that are also crucial in recommendation. Moreover, the existing offline evaluation methods cannot measure rewards such as discount coupons that may play a vital role in strengthening customers’ desire for purchase and thereby stimulating their purchase with a provision of a recommendation list. In this study, we used an SOR model to verify the effect of personalized recommendation stimulus on a customer’s response in an actual online environment. The results indicate that the customers’ response rate was higher with a provision of personalized recommendations than that of bestseller recommendations, and higher when being offered with cash discounts than earning redeemable points. Meanwhile, the response rate to the recommendation with higher volumes of rewards was not as high as expected, while the point pressure mechanism did not work either.

식생활라이프스타일과 HMR 선택속성의 차이점에 관한 연구

This study aims to provide basic data that can help in planning and constructing new HMR products based on the results of identifying the choice affecting the selection attributes of HMR (Home Meal Meal) according to dietary lifestyle. The results and implications are as follows.First, as a result of cluster analysis of 6 component factors derived through factor analysis on dietary lifestyle, they were classified into 3 clusters. Second, as a result of verifying the difference in HMR food selection attributes, it was found that diversity and hygiene and cleanliness factors were statistically significant as factors that had differences by market segment.Lastly, HMR companies will need to develop a variety of quality rather than quantity products, sanitary manufacturing processes, packaging methods, store cleanliness, and employee hygiene management to be competitive.

HMR의 구매행태와 구매 채널을 고려한 중국 소비자의 유형화

This work sets out to investigate purchase behavior of Chinese customers with respect to HMR(Home meal replacement) products and categorize them. In this study the main stress falls on multichannel selection according to their purchase behavior and demographic characteristics. And it mainly focuses on the question of what kind of factors influence on purchasing the HMR and how to classify the customer groups based on the consideration attributes. We surveyed 170 Chinese customers who had used HMR products for the past twelve months, ranging from 20 to 69 years old. In order to characterize the customers, 22 factors were selected by earlier studies and brainstorming. The result was organized by factor score from K-mean clustering method, Chinese consumers were clustered into four groups. They are listed here as follows; (1)group focusing on major supermarkets, (2)group focusing on online stores, (3)group focusing on many different types of offline stores, and (4)group for cross-channel shopper. Customers who had purchased HMR products and obtained the related information mainly from major supermarkets were classified as Group 1. Customers who had evaluated various factors for buying the products and mainly used online stores were classified as Group 2. And customers of Group 3 were purchased the products by many types of offline stores, contrary to the Group 1. Lastly, in Group 4, customers had trend of purchasing based on cross-channel shopping for various purposes. They were especially sensitive to price changes to select a purchase channel.

School Feeding in the Republic of Belarus

Introduction: The relevance of providing healthy nutrition for school-age children, a significant coverage of students with school meals, and an increase in the proportion of children requiring correction of the diet have determined the objective of the study to evaluate school feeding and to substantiate further measures for its improvement. Materials and methods: Twenty-six regulations on school meals adopted from the year 2000 to the present have been analyzed. The study of the eating schedule and the frequency of consumption of certain foodstuffs was carried out based on a survey of 1,975 parents and schoolchildren in grades 5 to 11. The energy value, the content of vitamins and minerals in school breakfasts and home meals of 1,168 fifth graders from the city of Minsk were estimated. Results: The findings show that regulations on school meals have been developed in the republic; dietary nutrition is organized at schools, the material and technical base of school kitchens is constantly being improved, and children are being taught healthy eating skills. At the same time, the analysis of actual nutrition at school and at home indicates malnutrition causing an imbalance in the dietary intake of macro- and micronutrients. Discussion: An effective model of school feeding has been created in the Republic of Belarus. Yet, the current system cannot fully ensure a balanced diet for children. It is therefore important to continue personnel training, monitoring of school meals using modern information technologies, and awareness raising on healthy eating among schoolchildren.

Supply of energy and selected nutrients in meals consumed by Moroccan students at home and on a university campus.

Student life is often accompanied by changes in eating behavior. Adopting a balanced and varied diet and healthy eating habits can promote the health, growth and intellectual development of young people at different stages of life. According to the WHO, a healthy diet helps protect against all forms of malnutrition, as well as against noncommunicable diseases. The nutritional and energy intake must follow nutritional norms, for example energy intake must be adapted to expenditure. To avoid excessive weight gain, fat should not exceed 30% of total energy intake. The goal of this study was to compare energy consumption, macronutrients and selected minerals in food rations consumed by students at university campus and at home. The subjects were chosen at random from among volunteer students from Hassan II University in Casablanca. A sample of 130 students (54 women and 76 men) aged 18 to 25, participated in this study. Anthropometric measurements were performed to assess general characteristics, and records of one-day food intakes at university and at the parental home were performed by 24-hour food diary, and as well as conducting face-to-face. Variables were expressed as mean ± standard deviation (SD). The Kolmogorov-Smirnov test was used to check the normality of data. In accordance with the body mass index classifications, 69.5% of male university students and 77.7% of female were in normal weight categories. The overweight classes were 25.1% and 5.6%, respectively, for men and women. Assessment of the energy and nutritional intakes of university and home meals shows that students consume more calories, protein, carbohydrates, sodium, potassium, and iodine at home than at university, but these contributions remain insufficient in relation to the RDAs. Students consume more fat, especially saturated fatty acids, at university than at home. More than half of students exceed the recommended daily recommendations for saturated fatty acids. These results indicate that a university students' diet is influenced by their behaviors, attitudes, and knowledge. Hence the importance of nutrition education, based on what foods to consume rather than what foods to avoid, a societal issue that requires a multidisciplinary, multisectoral and culturally appropriate approach.

Self-efficacy and Social Settings Matter for Fostering Healthy Eating in Mexican Schoolchildren

ObjectiveTo identify differences in schoolchildren's self-efficacy for eating behaviors across social settings and self-efficacy sources favoring healthy and unhealthy eating. DesignA cross-sectional, mixed-methods study using self-efficacy and demographic surveys, focus groups, and school environment semistructured observations. SettingMorelos, Mexico, Cuernavaca City school district, public elementary schools in the National School Lunch Program. Participants and RecruitmentWe studied 274 fifth- and sixth-grade children from 8 elementary schools during the 2016–2017 school year. Variables MeasuredChildren's self-efficacy for healthy and unhealthy eating across 3 settings (school cafeteria, recess, and home). Children's perceptions about sources of self-efficacy, which favor their healthy or unhealthy eating (performance accomplishments, behavior modeling, verbal persuasion, and emotional or physiological states). Sociodemographic information was obtained from parents. AnalysisWe performed a variance components analysis with school and students within schools as random effects with paired t tests (quantitative data) and content analysis on the basis of the Social Cognitive Theory (qualitative data). ResultsSchoolchildren's self-efficacy for healthy eating differed across social settings, being greater in the school cafeteria than at recess or home, except for drinking water. On average, self-efficacy for unhealthy eating was lower in the cafeteria than in other studied settings. Performance achievements and behavior modeling were key sources of self-efficacy for healthy and unhealthy eating. Conclusion and ImplicationsSources of self-efficacy and social settings matter to understanding schoolchildren's healthy and unhealthy eating. Future interventions might consider developing collective efficacy among the school community and boosting children's participation in home meal planning. Further research could explore locus of control and other intrapersonal dimensions influencing self-efficacy.

A Study of Consumers’ Perceptions of Take-Out Food before and after the COVID-19 Outbreak: Applying Big Data Analysis

This study explored changes in consumers’ perceptions of take-out food before and after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic using big data collected from social media. Using “take-out food” as a keyword, 18,544 search results were found in 2019, before the COVID-19 outbreak, compared to 20,718 search results in 2021. These keywords were analyzed using text mining, semantic network analysis, CONCOR analysis, and sentiment analysis, respectively, to understand consumers’ perception of take-out food. Using text mining, in 2019, “dining-out” was the most frequent search term associated with take-out food, followed by packing, famous restaurant, family, delicious, menu, and available. In 2021, “dining-out” was again the most popular keyword, followed by packing, famous restaurant, delivery, family, delicious, available, and Corona. A semantic network analysis showed that, in 2019, four categories emerged: delicious, meat, satisfaction, and lunchbox. The same analysis showed that, in 2021, the categories were delicious, meat, good, and home meal. These findings suggest that, after COVID-19, take-out food began to be recognized as a daily meal that can replace home-cooked meals. According to the sentiment analysis, the number of positive keywords decreased by 4.03% after COVID-19, while the number of negative keywords increased at the same rate; regarding the increase in negative keywords, such as sadness, disgust, and fear, since the emergence of COVID-19, consumers’ anxiety about eating out due to the virus was observed. This study can be useful by providing core data and an analysis method necessary for food service companies’ business activities and decision making related to take-out amid consumers’ rapidly changing needs for the dining-out environment caused by COVID-19.

Evaluación microscópica y estudio descriptivo de cristales y urolitos encontrados en el sistema de vías urinarias de perros y gatos

In this study, the presence and types of urine crystals in cats and dogs with urolithiasis/crystaluria and the effects of some demographic factors (such as type, breed, age, sex, sterilization status) on them were evaluated. In the study, physical, chemical and sediment examinations of urine samples of 67 cats and dogs were performed. It was determined that 83.58% of the animals with crystals in their urine were male. It was determined that 63.64% of the female animals and 44.64% of the male animals with crystals detected in the urinary tract were sterilized. It was determined that urinary crystals were more common in cats between 1-3 years of age (AO) and in dogs older than 3 AO. It was determined that calcium oxalate crystal (64.41%) in cats and struvite crystal (50%) in dogs were the most common crystals. It was determined that urine crystals were found mostly in cross breeds in cats and dogs. It was determined that most of the cats and dogs with urine crystals were fed with home meals and non-branded foods. It was determined that urinary tract infections had an effect on the formation of urine crystals. As a result, it was concluded that it is important in terms of Veterinary Medicine that such studies should be routinely performed, especially in the United States of North America (such as the Minnesota Urolith Center), since urine crystals cause significant lower urinary system diseases.

Wellness on Wheels: Integrating Childhood Obesity Prevention Strategies in an Outdoor Nutrition Education Program in a Community Facing Food Insecurity and High Rates of Childhood Obesity

Upon completion, participant will be able to describe the steps for a school-based MyPlate nutrition education program that includes recipe demonstration, food access, and promotion of child-family home meal preparation.

A Down Home Meal for These Difficult Times by Meron Hadero

A Down Home Meal for These Difficult Times by Meron Hadero

COVID-19 위기지각에 따른 외식과 HMR 소비가치에 대한 연구

The purpose of this study was to predict the eating out behavior of eating out and HMR(home meal replacement)according to crisis situations by comparing the degree of psychological status of consumers in crisis situations such as COVID-19 in the future and contribute to preparing countermeasures. In this study, a questionnaire was distributed to those aged 20 or older who purchased and experienced HMR and dining out after the COVID-19 outbreak for a week from September 27, 2021, and 409 copies were analyzed using SPSS 23.0. First, as a result of analyzing the groups according to the perception of the COVID-19 crisis, four groups were categorized: COVID-19 ‘Crisis Low Perception Group,’ ‘Isolated Fear Group,’ ‘Safety Fear Group’, and ‘Crisis High Perception Group ’ The perception of restaurant consumers was investigated by conducting a comparative analysis of eating out and HMR consumption values between groups according to COVID-19 crisis perception and a comparative analysis of eating out and HMR consumption values within a group according to COVID-19 crisis perception.

The Association between Religious Beliefs and Food Waste: Evidence from Chinese Rural Households

This paper investigates the Chinese rural household food waste issue from the unique perspective of religious beliefs based on 1380 samples in 26 provinces in mainland China. By using the count regression approach model, it is found that about 2.30% of the home meal is wasted on average for Chinese rural households. The empirical results reveal that religion has a significantly negative impact on residents’ food wastage, and religious rural households waste less food than their counterparts. Taking into account the possible omission of variables and selection bias, the above conclusion is still valid. Additionally, male household heads, small household size, young families, bad food storage conditions, and the poorer convenience of buying foods are positively related to the higher food waste rate in rural China. Thus, the study provides evidence that religiosity plays a positive role in reducing food waste in rural China. As most of the world’s population is religious to some extent, the finding may also apply to other countries or regions, and it implies that religion and sustainable food consumption are closely related.

Assessing the impacts of COVID-19 on activity-travel scheduling: A survey in the greater Toronto area.

The COVID-19 lockdown provided many individuals an opportunity to explore changes in their daily routines, particularly when considered in combination with an ever-changing Information and Communication Technology (ICT) landscape. These new routines and alternative activities have the potential to be continued in the post-COVID era. Transportation planners must understand how routines vary to effectively estimate activity-travel scheduling. The purpose of this study is to determine the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown on activity-travel behavior and the adoption of ICT-based alternative options. A special emphasis is placed on predicting the long-term effects of this disturbance on activity-travel scheduling. This study examines the changes in the frequency and mode of completing five of the most repetitious tasks in the daily schedule (working, grocery and non-grocery shopping, preparing/eating meals, and visiting family/friends) during the lockdown and immediately after reopening. We find an increased preference for home meal preparation over online ordering and a reluctance to engage in in-person shopping until a substantial proportion of the population has acquired a vaccination against the virus. Respondents prefer to work from home if they have adequate access to home office materials (e.g., desk, chair, computer monitor). Individuals with children must also consider suitable childcare before considering a return to work.

City Symphony

City Symphony