By Kim Rahn
Staff Reporter
South Koreans are more scared of unhealthy food than North Korean nuclear weapons, according to survey results released Wednesday.
The Korea Press Foundation interviewed 529 adults in Seoul last September and found that the respondents rated the dangers of harmful food at four out of five ― the highest among 11 factors they considered dangerous to life.
More than 77 percent of the surveyed said they were slightly or very much afraid of the dangers from substandard food, agrochemical poisoning, genetically modified organisms (GMO) and a shortage of food.
Trailing this was job insecurity, crime, and industrial natural disasters, with 3.9 points each.
The surveyed also showed anxiety over a weak social or medical insurance system (3.7), threats from neighboring countries (3.6), erosion of democracy (3.5), suppression of human rights and freedom (3.5), and the misuse of scientific technology (3.5).
Among the 11 items, Koreans showed the least concern over war on the Korean Peninsula, with 3.2 points.
``People showed most concern over dangers that can affect their daily lives directly or that they can easily confront. They also tend to think that they are less exposed to dangers that are abstract,’’ Yoo Sun-young, a researcher at the foundation, said.
Her study also showed that people get information about dangerous factors mainly through television, followed by conversations with family, friends and colleagues, newspapers and the Internet.
Yoo said that society has a low level of trust in the public sector, including the government and legislature. When asked how much they trust a list of organizations, they rated KBS top with 52.9 out of 100; MBC at 51.2; Samsung Group, 50.2; Internet portals, 49.9; and the prosecution at 47.7. The courts scored 46.4; police, 45.9; civic groups, 45.7; and the government, 44.9.
``The level of trust in the government, politics and public systems is very low here. Against this backdrop, the role of media is very important in bridging the gap,’’ Yoo said.