Objectives: To examine trends in meal patterns and food choices across two generations of Japanese-American females born in the USA. Design: Cross-sectional cohort study. Setting: Gardena, a suburb of Los Angeles, California. Subjects: One-hundred and seventy-six Japanese-American females, participating in a morning exercise class from December 1998 to January 1999. Intervention: Eighty-eight Nisei (second generation) mothers and their Sansei (third generation) daughters completed a food frequency questionnaire, answering questions regarding meal patterns and consumption frequency of 51 food items. Results: The Sansei ate fewer meals per day compared with the Nisei. Mean frequencies of takeout foods and eating out were higher in the Sansei vs the Nisei. Mean intake of meats and eggs were similar between the two groups. However, mean consumption of traditional Japanese complement foods including ®sh, vegetables and legumes was lower in the Sansei vs the Nisei. Intake of more`Westernized' accessory foods, including salty snacks, regular soft drinks and alcoholic beverages, was higher in the Sansei vs the Nisei. Conclusion: Findings from this study indicate that meal patterns and food choices have changed in succeeding generations of Japanese-American females from traditional fare to a diet containing many complement and accessory foods that are higher in fat, sugar, sodium and calories. Health professionals should be advised to consider the whole diet in making nutrition recommendations to this population as well as providing information to this group on the nutritional bene®ts of many traditional foods.

In theory, sunshine exposure is sufficient to maintain normal vitamin D concentrations for the optimal growth of newborn infants. To determine whether season of birth, latitude (north v. south) and increasing dosages of vitamin D supplements would influence the growth rate for the first 6 months of life, 255 healthy fall-and spring-born infants from two northern and two southern cities in China were randomly assigned to receive either 100, 200, or 400 IU of vitamin D a day. The study showed that season of birth and dose of vitamin D did not affect the growth rate of infants born in the same latitude, but a significant difference was found in the gain in length over the 6-month period between infants from the north and infants from the south (P = 0.0001). Regional differences among the Chinese people, other than sunshine exposure, may have influenced the difference in length gain.

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