Correlation of Breakfast Consumption Frequency and Grade Point Average in Preclinical Medical Students

Background: Due to its nutritious, metabolic, and overall energy-providing benefits, studies have emphasized the value of breakfast, resulting in support of breakfast as “the most important meal of the day,” and subsequently, essential for academic success. However, limited research exists on the impact of habitual breakfast consumption on medical students. How does eating breakfast contribute to the academic success and well-being of medical students? Methods: A voluntary survey was distributed to preclinical medical students to gather information on their breakfast-eating habits as well as other indicators of well-being, including mental health, physical health, and stress. Participants indicated the average number of times per week they consumed breakfast. They also recorded the likelihood of eating breakfast on the day of an exam and various components of well-being on a five-point Likert scale. Subjects also provided student identification (ID) numbers. To measure academic success, grade point averages (GPAs) were then extracted using each student's ID number. A correlation analysis was performed between the breakfast-eating habits of medical students and their GPA. Results: 121 surveys met the inclusion criteria. A correlation analysis showed that frequency of eating breakfast was positively correlated with GPA (r=0.35, p<0.001). Eating breakfast on the day of an exam was also positively correlated with GPA (r=0.32, p<0.001). Eating breakfast had no significant correlation with indices of well-being. Conclusion: Consistently eating breakfast may contribute to greater academic performance among medical students. However, eating breakfast appears to have no impact on well-being. Based on this research, eating breakfast regularly may help preclinical medical students boost their academic performance.

Influence of Having Breakfast on Happiness and Attention-Concentration among High School Students

Background: Healthful nutrition has a positive connection with both physical and mental health. Breakfast is often considered as the most important meal of the day. Despite the benefits, skipping the morning meal is highly prevalent among adolescents. Healthy eating has an effect on happiness and concentration but a firm connection has not been established. Breakfast skipping can be a factor and a gap in the literature exists in this regard. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationships between eating breakfast, happiness and attention concentration among high school students. Methods: In this descriptive cross-sectional study, a convenient sampling strategy was used to select the students from an International school located in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The 29-item Oxford Happiness Questionnaire along with demographic variables was employed as research instrument. Chi-square test, student t-test and ANOVA were used to compare different categorical variables. Results: The overall Happiness mean score was 3.621 ± 0.6637. Students who were regular at having breakfast every day had higher happiness mean scores. Overall, 40% of the participants reported to have decreased concentration/attentiveness during the first 4 lectures at school. Majority (55%) of the breakfast skippers were distracted in the lessons. A regular breakfast eating habit was found to be significantly associated with happiness (p=0.04) and concentration during lectures (p=0.04) respectively. Majority of the students had insufficient physical activity (72%) and had experienced stress (88%) in the last six months respectively. The prevalence of being overweight/ obese among breakfast skippers was higher (39%) than was in breakfast consumers (26%). Conclusion: Eating breakfast was associated with higher happiness scores and better concentration among high school students. An alarmingly high prevalence of stress among students is a cause of concern. Schools should start breakfast eating programs and promote physical activity to reduce stress. Future studies are needed to explore the factors associated with stress.

Breakfast Eating Habits and Lifestyle Behaviors among Saudi Primary School Children Attending Public Versus Private Schools

We investigated breakfast eating habits and lifestyle behaviors among Saudi school children attending public versus private schools. A random sample of 1149 children (girls: 54.4%) from public and private schools was selected from elementary schools using the multistage stratified cluster method. Measurements included body weight, height, body mass index (BMI), and self-reported questionnaires filled by the child’s parents. There was no significant (p = 0.44) difference in the prevalence of breakfast intake between children attending public (20.6%) versus private (19.4%) schools. However, there was a gender by school type interactions in breakfast intake frequency, as boys in private but not in public schools had significantly (p = 0.006) higher (26.3%) daily breakfast intake than girls (13.3%). Over 56% of the children ate and drank from the school canteen, and impacting factors on children’s choices were children’s desire, food taste, and parental influence. More parents of children in private (12.1%) than in public (6.9%) schools were satisfied with the food in the school canteen. Younger age (aOR = 0.889, 95% CI = 0.815–0.970, p = 0.008), higher father education (aOR = 1.380, 95% CI = 1.130–1.686, p = 0.002), family income (aOR = 1.227, 95% CI = 1.005–1.498, p = 0.044), and insufficient sleep duration (aOR = 0.740, 95% CI = 0.553–0.990, p = 0.042) were significantly associated with being in a private school. Furthermore, no significant differences, when adjusted for socio-demographic factors, appeared in breakfast intake or overweight/obesity relative to school type. Interventions to improve daily breakfast consumption and lifestyle behaviors of Saudi children are warranted.

A systematic review of interventions to increase breakfast consumption: a socio-cognitive perspective

Objective: Regular breakfast skipping is related to unhealthy dietary behaviours, such as consuming an overall poorer quality diet and lower rates of physical activity, both of which are linked to a higher BMI. Adolescent breakfast skippers struggle with mental focus, sleep issues and lower grades. Solutions that can be implemented to overcome breakfast skipping are needed. Design: A systematic literature review was undertaken to identify programmes that aimed to increase breakfast eating. Following the PRISMA framework, studies were sourced to examine details of behaviour change, evidence of theory use and other important programme learnings and outcomes. Setting: Breakfast consumption empirical studies published from 2000 onwards. Participants: Nineteen empirical studies that aimed to improve breakfast eating behaviour. Results: Out of the nineteen studies examined, ten studies reported an increase in breakfast consumption frequency for the entire study group or subgroups. Seven studies found no change, one was inconclusive and one observed a decrease in breakfast frequency. Positive changes to the dietary quality of breakfast were observed in five of the studies that did not observe increased frequency of breakfast consumption. Only six studies reported using theory in the intervention. Conclusions: This evidence review points needed to extend theory application to establish a reliable evidence base that can be followed by practitioners seeking to increase breakfast eating rates in their target population.

Breakfast skipping alone and in interaction with inflammatory based quality of diet increases the risk of higher scores of psychological problems profile in a large sample of Iranian adults

The authors investigate the association of breakfast skipping and its interaction with a dietary inflammatory index (DII) with the severity of psychological disorders. A total of 2876 Iranian general adults were enrolled in this cross-sectional study. Psychological problems profile score was calculated using the regression method in the framework of factor analysis based on depression, anxiety and psychological distress. The higher scores indicate more severity of mental problem. The frequency of breakfast eating in a week was assessed. Dietary intakes were assessed using a food-frequency questionnaire and twenty-seven items were included in the calculation of DII. In the crude model, individuals who ate breakfast seldom had the highest odds for having worse psychological problems profile (OR 3⋅59; 95 % CI 2⋅52, 5⋅11). Adjustment for various confounders did not change the associations (OR 3⋅35; 95 % CI 2⋅11, 5⋅32). In the adjusted multinomial logistic regression model, participants with high DII (>median) who skipped breakfast had highest risk of being in the higher tertiles of psychological problems profile compared with those who had low DII (<median) and ate breakfast (OR 6⋅67; 95 % CI 3⋅45, 12⋅90). Similar results were observed in women and men regarding the impact of breakfast skipping alone and interaction with DII on scores of psychological problems profile. Breakfast skipping is associated with higher risk of psychological problems. Similar findings were obtained in the stratified analysis by sex. Our findings confirmed that the DII and breakfast skipping are associated with mental health, interactionally. Further longitudinal studies are needed to confirm the true link between breakfast skipping and psychological problems.

Anthropometric, Familial- and Lifestyle-Related Characteristics of School Children Skipping Breakfast in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Breakfast is a vital meal that provides children with important nutrients and energy. This study examined the anthropometric, familial- and lifestyle-related characteristics of school children skipping breakfast. A total of 1149 children (boys: 45.5%), 6 to 12 years old (mean and SD: 9.3 ± 1.7 years), were randomly selected from elementary schools in Jeddah. Weight and height were measured. Breakfast eating frequency, socio-demographics, and lifestyle behaviors were assessed using a specifically designed self-report questionnaire reported by the parents. Nearly 80% of the children skipped daily breakfast at home with no significant age or gender differences. The most common reasons for skipping breakfast at home included not feeling hungry and waking up late for school. Fried egg sandwiches and breakfast cereals were most frequently consumed for breakfast. Strong parental support for breakfast as the main daily meal was significantly associated with daily breakfast intake. Logistic regression analyses, adjusted for age, gender, and socio-demographics, revealed that paternal education (aOR = 1.212, 95% CI = 1.020–1.440, p = 0.029), maternal education (aOR = 1.212, 95% CI = 1.003–1.464, p=0.046), insufficient sleep (aOR = 0.735, 95% CI = 0.567–0.951, p = 0.019), and BMI <25 kg/m2 (aOR = 1.333, 95% CI = 1.015–1.752, p = 0.039) were significantly associated with breakfast intake. The findings have implications for children’s health and school performance. Concerted effort is required to promote breakfast consumption among Saudi children.

Distribution of Nutrients in Breakfast and Midmorning Snacks among Overweight or Obese Adolescents of Yazd, Iran

Background: The important risk factors in obesity are related to unhealthy nutritional habits. The aim of this study was to estimate and compare the macro- and micro-nutrients’ intake in breakfast and midmorning snacks. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 569 students (12-16 years) by the multistage cluster sampling method. The demographic data were gathered by interview. Anthropometric data and breakfast habits (breakfast frequency and time as well as nutrients’ intake at breakfast or snacks) were measured using standardized instruments by asking some questions. Results: The results showed that the high prevalence of irregular breakfast eating (IRBE) and overweight or obesity. No significant difference was found between breakfast frequency and time according to the students’ gender or body mass index (BMI). The mean BMI had a significant increase in females; whereas, the percentage of energy from breakfast (EB%), snack (ES%), or both breakfast and snacks (EBS%) were shown no significant difference between genders. A significant increase was found in EB%, EB%, and EBS%; whereas, the daily energy intake (DEI) was lower in normal-weight students. However, other nutrients at breakfast or snacks had no significant difference. The level of higher DEI was reported in IRBE adolescents. Conclusions: An inappropriate breakfast habit can cause irreparable consequences in adolescents. Although breakfast plays an undeniable role, other factors are also effective in one’s health. Further studies are required for more comprehensive results.

Potential Factors related to BMI among School going adolescents of Madurai District, Tamil Nadu, India

This study aims to recognize essential aspects (related to lifestyle, eating and sedentary behaviours) of overweight and obesity among school-going adolescents of Madurai District, Tamil Nadu. Data were elicited on the physical activity patterns, sedentary practices at home, sleep duration and lifestyle behaviours such as habits of snacking, skipping breakfast, eating in front of television and frequency of eating out. Among 7660 subjects, 514 samples were found to be overweight and obese and analyzed with the suitable statistical tools such as percentage analysis, chi-square test to check the level of significance. 74.4 per cent of obese adolescents were found to have the habit of consuming snacks. The prevalence of Overweight 95 (18.48%) and obese 315 (61.28%) was more significant in Nuclear families. However, there was no statistically significant association between family type and BMI (χ2 = 2.575, p &gt; .05). No statistical association was found between the BMI and snacking and eating patterns of school-going adolescents. Majority of 364 children expenditure towards snacks are less than Rs.25.

Association between breakfast skipping and metabolic outcomes with sex, age, and work status stratification

Background The association between breakfast skipping and abnormal metabolic outcome remains controversial. Large study with stratified data is needed. Objective The aim of the current study was to investigate the relationship between abnormal metabolic outcomes and breakfast skipping with sex, age, and work status stratification. Methods We used data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys from 2013–2018. A total of 21,193 (9,022 men and 12,171 women) participants were included in the final analysis. The risk of the increased total number of metabolic outcomes linked to breakfast skipping was estimated using the Poisson regression analysis with sex, work status, and age stratification. Results A total of 11,952 (56.4%) participants consumed breakfast regularly. The prevalence of abnormal metabolic outcomes was higher among those with irregular breakfast consumption habits. In the irregular breakfast eating group, young men in the working population demonstrated a higher risk of metabolic syndrome after adjustment (odds ratio, 1.15; 95% confidence interval, 1.06–1.25). We found a similar association among middle-aged men in the working population (odds ratio, 1.11; 95% confidence interval, 1.05–1.19). Conclusions The risk of abnormal metabolic outcomes was significant in young men in the working population. Further studies are required to understand the association between specific working conditions (working hours or shift working) and breakfast intake status and the risk of metabolic outcomes