title: Effects of 12-week Vegetarian Diet on the Nutritional Status, Stress Status and Bowel Habits in Middle School Students and Teachers.
abstract: This study investigated the effect of switching normal diet to vegetarian diet rich in vegetables and fruits for school foodservice and home meal on the nutritional status, bowel habit improvement and stress reduction of teachers and adolescents. A total of 40 research subjects (26 students, 14 teachers) from one middle school voluntarily participated in the research. Questionnaire surveys and blood analysis were conducted before and after a 12-week vegetarian diet period. The participants were asked on their dietary habit, bowel habit and stress measurement. After 12 weeks, reduction of BMI (kg/m(2)) in the students (p < 0.05) and reduction of TC (mg/dL) in both teachers and students (p < 0.05) were observed. Also reduction of LDL-C (mg/dL) was observed in the teachers (p < 0.05) whereas serum calcium and Vitamin B12 was increased in the students and teachers (p < 0.005). The teacher's stress level was reduced (p < 0.05) after the 12-week vegetarian diet. As for the changes in bowel habit, the number of the students and teachers classified as experiencing functional constipation was decreased respectively from 10 to 7, from 7 to 5. Based on the result, it is considered that the vegetarian diet rich in fruits and vegetables improved general health status of study subjects suggesting that such a dietary habit would substantially contribute to improving nutritional status and bowel habit.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Nutrition, Kyung Hee University, Yongin 17104, Korea.
authors.forename: Bo Ra
authors.initials: BR
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Nutrition, Kyung Hee University, Yongin 17104, Korea.
authors.forename: Yu Mi
authors.initials: YM
authors.lastname: Ko
authors.affiliation: Buksung Middle School, Gwangju 61246, Korea.
authors.forename: Mi Hee
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Cho
authors.affiliation: Buksung Middle School, Gwangju 61246, Korea.
authors.forename: Young Ran
authors.initials: YR
authors.lastname: Yoon
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition Education, Gachon University, Seongnam 13120, Korea.
authors.forename: Seung Hee
authors.identifier: 0000-0003-1308-9705
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Kye
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Nutrition, Kyung Hee University, Yongin 17104, Korea.; Institute of Medical Nutrition, Kyung Hee University, Seoul 02447, Korea.
authors.forename: Yoo Kyoung
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-8536-0835
authors.initials: YK
authors.lastname: Park
keywords: Bowel habits; Nutritional status; School food service; Stress; Vegetarian diet