Monitoring the Sugar Content and Intake in School Meals from Incheon and Chuncheon

Hee Yun Kim, Se Jong Park*, So Young Chung, Seon Hee Choi, Sun Woo Oh, Jin Sook Lee,In Sun Choi, Min Su Shin, and Jae Sang SongHazard Substances Analysis Division, Seoul Regional Korea Food and Drug AdministrationAbstract The purpose of this study was to analyze the content and consumption of total sugar from school lunches atIncheon and Chuncheon. The samples were collected from eight elementary schools and eight middle schools in Incheonand Chuncheon for 15 days. The analysis of total sugar content was performed for 1334 main dishes, side dishes, anddesserts, which were supplied by elementary and middle school foodservices. Total sugar content was extracted fromvarious types of food with 50% ethanol after defatting. We simultaneously analyzed sugars such as fructose, glucose,sucrose, maltose, and lactose by a high performance liquid chromatography with refractive index detector. The averagelunch intake for elementary school and middle school students was 372.6±72.2 g and 449.2±81.1 g, respectively. The totalsugar content in desserts was 7.21±6.32 g/100 g, 1.69±2.44 g/100 g in side dishes, and 0.32±0.77 g/100 g in main dishes.Among side dishes, fried foods, stir-fried foods, and sauces contained the highest amounts of total sugar. The total sugarintake was 4.63±5.11 g in desserts, 0.64±1.01 g in side dishes, and 0.55±1.48 g in main dishes. Main and side dishes witha high total sugar intake included cooked rice with seasoning, fried foods, stir-fried foods, and preserved foods. Theaverage total sugar intake per meal for elementary school, middle school, and all students was 4.03±3.67 g, 6.97±6.59 g,and 5.50±5.53 g, respectively. We have provided useful information to decrease the intake of total sugar in school lunches.It is recommended that total sugar intake be continuously monitored.Keywords: total sugar content, intake, school, foodservice