(P20-046-24) Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Nutrient Intake Adequacy of Korean Adults

Objectives: This study aimed to assess and compare nutrient intake adequacy in Korean adults before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, based on the data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) 2018–2021.

Methods: To estimate the usual nutrient intake of adults aged 19 to 64 years, ratios of within-person to between-person variance were derived from the 24-hour recall data over 2 non-consecutive days in KNHANES 2009 and applied to one-day recall data in KNHANES 2018-2021. Then the usual nutrient intake of adults was examined for adequacy against EAR, UL, and AMDR of the Korean Dietary Reference Intakes by their meat and/or fish consumption and dietary supplements (DS) use.

Results: With an overall trend of decreased dietary intake during the pandemic (2020 & 2021), the proportion of adults who consumed neither meat nor fish (NMNF) on the survey date increased (2.2% to 3.5%, p < 0.001) with concomitant increase in dietary supplement use (39.8% to 51.2%, p < 0.001) compared with those before the pandemic period. Although the mean intakes of most nutrients examined were well over the RNIs in meat and/or fish consumers (MF), they were far below the RNIs in NMNF. While the proportion of adults with inadequate intake below EAR or AMDR ranged from 2.8% (phosphate) to 75.0% (vitamin A) by nutrient, excessive intake over UL was not noted except for niacin (0.1%) in MF. In NMNF, nutrient intake inadequacy was more prevalent ranging from 6.0 % (protein) to 97.5% (vitamin A) by nutrient with no excessive intake. DS use alleviated the inadequacy more in NMNF than MF and the difference was the highest for vitamin C suggesting a possible trend toward more supplement use for immune boosting. DS use also resulted in noticeable proportions of adults with excessive intake for some nutrients (iron, vitamin A, niacin, vitamin C) in MF but in less evident proportions in NMNF.

Conclusions: During the COVID-19 pandemic, overall dietary intake of nutrients declined compared to the levels before the pandemic, with increased reliance on DS use particularly in NMNF. This trend underscores the need for further research on the impact of changes in dietary pattern and DS use on health outcome even after the pandemic.

Funding Sources: This research was supported by a grant (23192MFDS082) from Ministry of Food and Drug Safety in 2023.