title: Evaluation of shellfish consumption in Nha Trang City, Southern coastal Vietnam.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Shellfish consumption may be a significant pathway to food contaminants such as heavy metals, pesticides and phycotoxins. Currently, little information exists about consumption of shellfish in Vietnam. Such data could be of interest in terms of nutritional value or risk assessment.
  
  
  METHODS
  Consumption of shellfish was assessed using a food frequency questionnaire and validated by a 7-day recall method. Approximately 1% of the city population of Nha Trang was selected yielding a final sample of 440 participants. The participants were above 18 years of age, in apparently good health and were shellfish consumers.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In South coastal Vietnam, the types of shellfish most consumed are green mussel, squid, crab and shrimp. The mean consumption rates of the bivalves, crustaceans, gastropods, cephalopods, echinoderms and all shellfish combined were 39.3, 20.9, 16.4, 11.2, 0.3 and 88.1 g/person/day, respectively. The consumption rate was slightly higher in the age group of 30-54 years, than in the younger (18-29 years) and older (55 years and above) age groups. Shellfish is essentially purchased in the markets and temporary markets, and mostly consumed during the dry season.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Shellfish consumption in the Southern coastal region of Vietnam is high compared to consumption levels in other countries; it is also high compared to consumption levels of Vietnamese emigrants. Such data may be useful for further investigation on nutrition perspectives and in term of risk assessment of shellfish contaminants.
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Quality Management and Safety, Faculty of Food Processing Technology, Nha Trang University, 2 Nguyen Dinh Chieu, Nha Trang, Vietnam.
authors.forename: T A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Nguyen
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Picot
authors.forename: T L
authors.initials: TL
authors.lastname: Tran
authors.forename: F G
authors.initials: FG
authors.lastname: Carpentier
authors.forename: A C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Roudot
authors.forename: D M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Parent-Massin
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000818:Animals; D003386:Brachyura; D049830:Cephalopoda; D003445:Crustacea; D004032:Diet; D015930:Diet Records; D005260:Female; D005502:Food; D005506:Food Contamination; D049851:Gastropoda; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008974:Mollusca; D009753:Nutritive Value; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012737:Sex Factors; D012758:Shellfish; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014744:Vietnam