The link between breakfast skipping and overweigh/obesity in children and adolescents: a meta-analysis of observational studies

Breakfast skipping and overweight/obesity in first grade primary school children: A nationwide register-based study in Iceland

Although several studies have revealed an association between skipping breakfast and overweight (OW) or obesity (OB) in older children and adolescents, less is known about that association in younger children. The purpose of our study was to assess the association between skipping breakfast and OW/OB in children in the first grade. The sample included 4360 children (51.5% boys) aged 5.6 to 7.4 years who participated in the annual health examination in Iceland during 2016 and 2017, completed by 91% of all first graders in Iceland. Binary logistic regression analysis with odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) was used to assess the association between skipping breakfast and OW/OB. Skipping breakfast was assessed as not eating breakfast on the day of the assessment, whereas OW or OB was based on measured height and weight relative to the International Obesity Task Force reference. The final analyses were adjusted for bedtime, well-being in school, commuting to school and physical activity. 7.2% of the boys (n = 162) and 7.5% of the girls (n = 158) had not eaten breakfast. After multivariable adjustment, a statistically significant association emerged between skipping breakfast and OW/OB in girls (OR 1.66, 95% CI 1.17-2.36) but not in boys (OR 1.02, 95% CI 0.63-1.63). Because the study's results suggest an association between skipping breakfast and OW/OB only in first-grade girls in Iceland, sex-based differences should be further investigated to inform future strategies for preventing OW and OB in young children.

Longitudinal association between food frequency and changes in body mass index: a prospective cohort study

OBJECTIVES

Analysing data of the Young Lives Study in Peru, we aimed at assessing the association between daily food frequency and body mass index (BMI) changes between 2006 and 2016.

DESIGN

Secondary analysis of a prospective ongoing cohort study.

SETTING

20 sentinel sites in Peru.

PARTICIPANTS

Children enrolled in the younger cohort of the Young Lives Study. We used information from the second (2006-2007), third (2009-2010), fourth (2013-2014) and fifth (2016-2017) rounds of the younger cohort in Peru.

PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOMES

BMI as well as BMI-for-age z-score, both as numerical variables.

RESULTS

Data from 1948 children, mean age 4.3 (SD: 0.3) years and 966 (49.6%) women were included at baseline. In multivariable model, lower food consumption frequency was associated with increased BMI and BMI-for-age z-scores: children reporting <4 times of food consumption per day had a greater increase in BMI (β=0.39; 95% CI 0.17 to 0.62) and BMI-for-age z-score (β=0.07; 95% CI 0.01 to 0.13) compared with those reporting 5 per day. Results were consistent for those reporting exactly eating 4 times per day (β for BMI=0.16; 95% CI 0.02 to 0.30 and β for BMI-for-age z-score=0.05; 95% CI 0.01 to 0.09).

CONCLUSIONS

Children who eat <5 times per day, gain more BMI compared with those who eat ≥5 times. Parents should receive information to secure adequate nutrition for their children, both in terms of quality and quantity.

Adiposity, lifestyle behaviors, and cardiometabolic markers in Argentinean schoolchildren

BACKGROUND

We determined the association between schoolchildren's OW/OB with age, sex, lifestyle behaviors, and cardiometabolic markers.

METHODS

Age, sex, anthropometric measures, and BP (blood pressure) were recorded in 1249 (554 M) schoolchildren. OW/OB was defined as BMI > 85%ile and BMI > 95%ile respectively. A validated questionnaire for lifestyle behaviors was performed. We offered free laboratory testing to a subgroup of 168 children.

RESULTS

Schoolchildren aged 8.8 ± 2.1 y from 9 elementary schools in 4 areas of Argentina were examined between April and September 2019. 265 (21.2%) of the children were OW, 265 (21.2%) were OB, and 425 (35%) had central OB. OW/OB was associated with low milk intake (OR = 1.92; 95% CI, 1.1-3.3), skipping breakfast (OR = 2.00; 95% CI, 1.2-3.4), a family history of hypertension (OR = 1.74; 95% CI, 1.1-2.9), and systolic BP (OR = 1.03; 95% CI, 1.01-1.05); adjusted for confounding variables. The subgroup analysis showed that OW/OB children had lower iron (83 vs. 94 ug/dl, respectively) and HDL-C (43 vs. 47 mg/dl) levels, but higher non-HDL-C (107 vs. 99 mg/dl) levels than normal-weight children. Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that OW/OB was inversely associated with iron (OR = 0.99; 95% CI, 0.98-0.998) and HDL-C (OR = 0.94; 95% CI, 0.91-0.97) levels; adjusted for confounding variables.

CONCLUSION

Adiposity in schoolchildren was associated with unhealthy lifestyle behaviors, higher atherogenic risk, and lower iron concentrations, suggesting that OW/OB children are at increased risk for anemia and cardiometabolic disease.

Dietary Patterns of Breakfast Consumption Among Chilean University Students

Breakfast is one of the most important meals of the day. A good quality breakfast must include dairy products, cereals, and fruits. The aim of this study is to determine breakfast dietary patterns and their nutritional quality among Chilean university students. A cross-sectional non-probabilistic study was conducted in 200 university students between 18 and 27 years in Santiago, Chile. To identify dietary patterns and breakfast quality, a breakfast food survey was conducted. Patterns were identified by factor analysis. Most of the subjects (53%) ate breakfast daily, with a higher prevalence among females (60.2% vs. 43.7%, p < 0.05); 68% did not consume fruits and 17.5% had good breakfast quality, with no differences by sex. Four breakfast dietary patterns were identified: “dairy & cereals”, “healthy”, “traditional salty” and “traditional sweet” that together explained 35.6% of the total variance. There was no sex difference in predominant dietary patterns. The “dairy & cereals” and “traditional sweet” patterns were associated with regularly eating breakfast (β: −0.47, p = 0.001; β: −0.32, p = 0.020) and the “healthy” pattern with BMI ≥25 kg/m² (β: 0.35, p = 0.024). In conclusion, breakfast quality was inadequate due to low fruit consumption and energy intake. The four identified patterns included cereals, bread, dairy, fats and sugars. Results may be usual in the planning of future interventions aimed at improving breakfast consumption and quality in university students.