Skipping Breakfast

Sofia Moon, Vi Tran, Amy Shieh, Joanna Lu

What is breakfast?
First meal of the day, eaten before or at the start of daily
activities (e.g., errands, travel, work), within 2 hours of
waking, typically no later than 10:00 in the morning, and of
an energy level between 20 and 35% of total daily energy
needs. 1

Energy Expenditure + Energy Intake = Total Energy Balance

Objective: Evaluate the importance of breakfast

and its role in weight management

Outline
Breakfast and weight management
Other benefits
Conclusion

Breakfast and weight

management

Association between Eating Patterns and Obesity in a Free-living US Adult Population

Skipping breakfast is associated with obesity

24-hour diet recalls, across one year
499 participants

Strengths and Limitations

Strengths
Large sample size
Conducted by trained researchers
Length of study
Limitations
Length of study
Majority of population white, middle class, part of HMO

A high-protein breakfast prevents body fat gain, through reductions in daily intake
and hunger, in Breakfast skipping adolescents

57 adolescents
12 weeks
Randomized study
Normal-protein vs. high-protein breakfast

Strengths and Limitations

Strengths

Interventional in nature compared to most studies observing correlation

Adolescents (most studies are done on adults)

Limitations

Sample size
Length of study
Further research needed to see effects on metabolism

Calorie Intake
Effect of skipping breakfast on
subsequent energy intake

Two Studies:
1. Three occasions
a. no breakfast
b. high carb
c. high fiber
2. Normal larger carb
breakfast
Population:
-Both habitual breakfast
consumers and those who skip
breakfast

Total Energy Intake

Levitsky (2013)

Other Benefits

Healthy Bowel Habits

1.

2.

Healthy Bone Mineral Density

Breakfast is a critical component for children to succeed

socially and academically.

Higher brain glucose metabolism

Longer sleeping time
Longer fasting time

Classroom Behavior
6-week intervention of SBP
Primary school in South Africa
Two Conditions:
1. SBP: ~267.4 Kcal
2. Control: No SBP

Richter et al. (1997)

Academic Performance
4-month intervention of SBP
Primary School in the U.S.
Stratified by SBP participation:
1. Often: > 80% attendance
2. Sometimes: 20 ~ 79 %
attendance
3. Rarely: < 20% attendance

Murphy et al. (1998) Gajre et al. (2008)

Skipping Breakfast
When I dont have my breakfast I have to
wait all that time until lunch and it just
makes me real tired like Im gonna fall to
sleep. (Child)

You just forget everything that youre

doing and the teacher has to stop helping
other people and go through it again.
(Child)

Harvey-Golding et al. (2015)

Conclusion

References
1.
2.
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5.

Timlin MT, Pereira MA. Breakfast frequency and quality in the etiology of adult obesity and chronic diseases. Nutr Rev. 2007;
65:26881
Katie A, Clare LL, and Louise D. The effects of breakfast on behavior and academic performance in children and adolescents.
Frontiers in Human Neuroscience. 2013; 7(425): 1-28. doi:10.3389/fnhum.2013.00425
Louise HG, Lynn MD, John B, Margaret AD. Universal free school breakfast: a qualitative model for breakfast behaviors.
Frontiers in Public Health. 2015; 3(154): 1-12. doi: 10.3389/fpubh2015.00154
Leidy HJ, Hoertel HA, Douglas SM, et al. A high-protein breakfast prevents body fat gain, through reductions in daily intake
and hunger, in Breakfast skipping adolescents. Obesity (Silver Spring). 2015 Sep; 23(9): 1761-4. doi: 10.1002/oby.21185
Yunsheng Ma, Elizabeth R. Bertone, Edward J. Stane III et al. Association between Eating Patterns and Obesity in a Free-living
US Adult Population. American Journal of Epidemiology. 2003; 158(1): 85-92. doi: 10.1093/aje/kwg117