Comparative Study of Eating Habits of University Students in Japan and Korea

To obtain relative judgment data on eating habits of university students in Japan, comparative studies were performed with students living in Korea, who have a common cultural view of the self as people from Japan. The eating habits of 403 Japanese and 178 Korean students were investigated, with the result that the ratio of those taking each meal (breakfast, lunch, and dinner) was invariably higher for student living in Japan than in Korea. Also, the variety of foods that are eaten more than three or four times a week was higher for Japanese students than for Koreans. A factor analysis of the awareness of eating items extracted the following five factors : Healthy eating, Interest in foods, Convenience, Impulsive eating, and Dieting. The examination of this analysis showed that the mean scores of Healthy eating and Convenience factors were higher for Koreans than for Japanese. Students who had a higher score on the factor Healthy eating showed a tendency to eat a variety of food through a balanced diet. It can be assumed that Japanese students have been practicing more desirable eating habits than Koreans, but their awareness toward Healthy eating is lower than that of Korean students.