NUTRITIONAL-EVALUATION OF WOMEN IN URBAN AREAS IN CONTINENTAL CHINA

In 1993-1995, a nutritional survey was conducted in China, in which 50 women each in three cities of Beijing, Shanghai and Nanning (thus 150 in total) volunteered to offer 24-hr total food duplicates and periph eral blood samples. People daily took 1,776 kcal (7,431 kJ) energy, 57 g protein, 75 g lipid, 218 g carbohydrate, 439 mg calcium, 24 mg iron , 3,398 mg sodium and 1,521 mg potassium. When compared with the recom mended dietary allowance for Chinese, intakes of energy, iron and poss ibly vitamin C were sufficient in a majority of the participants, but not so in cases of calcium, and several vitamins. The lipid energy rat io was 38% on an average and was higher than 30% in a majority (73%) o f the people. BMI, but not the lipid energy ratio, correlated with the serum triglyceride level. In accordance with high iron intake, the pr evalence of anemia was low. Inter-city differences mere evident in nut rient sources. Thus, Beijing people took more amounts of protein and l ipid from meats (including eggs and milk), whereas plant-based foods m ere important sources of lipid in Shanghai and that of protein in Nann ing. Furthermore, consumption of rice was significantly lower in Beiji ng than in Shanghai and Nanning, whereas wheat consumption was higher in Beijing than in Shanghai and Nanning. Copyright (C) 1997 by the Toh oku University Medical Press.