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Correlates of Lifestyle and Obesity

Associations between breakfast frequency and adiposity indicators in children from 12 countries

International Journal of Obesity Supplements volume 5, pages S80–S88 (2015)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

OBJECTIVES:

Reports of inverse associations between breakfast frequency and indices of obesity are predominantly based on samples of children from high-income countries with limited socioeconomic diversity. Using data from the International Study of Childhood Obesity, Lifestyle and the Environment (ISCOLE), the present study examined associations between breakfast frequency and adiposity in a sample of 9–11-year-old children from 12 countries representing a wide range of geographic and socio-cultural variability.

METHODS:

Multilevel statistical models were used to examine associations between breakfast frequency (independent variable) and adiposity indicators (dependent variables: body mass index (BMI) z-score and body fat percentage (BF%)), adjusting for age, sex, and parental education in 6941 children from 12 ISCOLE study sites. Associations were also adjusted for moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, healthy and unhealthy dietary patterns and sleep time in a sub-sample (n=5710). Where interactions with site were significant, results were stratified by site.

RESULTS:

Adjusted mean BMI z-score and BF% for frequent breakfast consumers were 0.45 and 20.5%, respectively. Frequent breakfast consumption was associated with lower BMI z-scores compared with occasional (P<0.0001, 95% confidence intervals (CI): 0.10–0.29) and rare (P<0.0001, 95% CI: 0.18–0.46) consumption, as well as lower BF% compared with occasional (P<0.0001, 95% CI: 0.86–1.99) and rare (P<0.0001, 95% CI: 1.07–2.76). Associations with BMI z-score varied by site (breakfast by site interaction; P=0.033): associations were non-significant in three sites (Australia, Finland and Kenya), and occasional (not rare) consumption was associated with higher BMI z-scores compared with frequent consumption in three sites (Canada, Portugal and South Africa). Sub-sample analyses adjusting for additional covariates showed similar associations between breakfast and adiposity indicators, but lacked site interactions.

CONCLUSIONS:

In a multinational sample of children, more frequent breakfast consumption was associated with lower BMI z-scores and BF% compared with occasional and rare consumption. Associations were not consistent across all 12 countries. Further research is required to understand global differences in the observed associations.

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Acknowledgements

We thank the ISCOLE External Advisory Board and the ISCOLE participants and their families who made this study possible. A membership list of the ISCOLE Research Group and External Advisory Board is included in Katzmarzyk et al. (this issue). ISCOLE was funded by The Coca-Cola Company. MF has received a research grant from Fazer Finland. RK has received a research grant from Abbott Nutrition Research and Development.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sport Science and Physical Activity, University of Bedfordshire, Bedford, UK

    J K Zakrzewski

  2. Department for Health, University of Bath, Bath, UK

    F B Gillison, S Cumming & M Standage

  3. Pennington Biomedical Research Center, Baton Rouge, LA, USA

    T S Church, P T Katzmarzyk, S T Broyles, C M Champagne, K D Denstel, G Hu, E F Mire & C Tudor-Locke

  4. Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

    J-P Chaput & M S Tremblay

  5. Department of Food and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland

    M Fogelholm

  6. St Johns Research Institute, Bangalore, India

    R Kuriyan & A Kurpad

  7. Department of Human Biology, Division of Exercise Science and Sports Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa

    E V Lambert

  8. Alliance for Research In Exercise Nutrition and Activity (ARENA), School of Health Sciences, University of South Australia, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia

    C Maher & T Olds

  9. CIFI2D, Faculdade de Desporto, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal

    J Maia

  10. Centro de Estudos do Laboratório de Aptidão Física de São Caetano do Sul (CELAFISCS), Sao Paulo, Brazil

    V Matsudo

  11. Department of Recreation Management and Exercise Science, Kenyatta University, Nairobi, Kenya

    V Onywera

  12. School of Medicine Universidad de los Andes, Bogota, Colombia

    O L Sarmiento

  13. Department of Kinesiology, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA

    C Tudor-Locke

  14. Tianjin Women’s and Children’s Health Center, Tianjin, China

    P Zhao

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  1. J K Zakrzewski
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Competing interests

MF has received a research grant from Fazer Finland and has received an honorarium for speaking for Merck. AK has been a member of the Advisory Boards of Dupont and McCain Foods. RK has received a research grant from Abbott Nutrition Research and Development. VM is a member of the Scientific Advisory Board of Actigraph and has received an honorarium for speaking for the Coca-Cola Company. TO has received an honorarium for speaking for the Coca-Cola Company. JZ has received a grant from The British Academy/Leverhulme Trust. The remaining authors declare no conflict of interest.

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Zakrzewski, J., Gillison, F., Cumming, S. et al. Associations between breakfast frequency and adiposity indicators in children from 12 countries. Int J Obes Supp 5 (Suppl 2), S80–S88 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/ijosup.2015.24

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