Skipping breakfast is associated with an increased prevalence of atherosclerosis, according to new findings from the PESA study. For this cross-sectional study, 4,052 asymptomatic participants (aged 40–54 years) were compared on the basis of their breakfast patterns: high-energy (>20% of total daily energy intake; 27% of participants), low-energy (5–20% of total daily energy intake; 70% of participants), and no breakfast (<5% of total daily energy; 3% of participants). Regularly skipping breakfast was associated with a higher prevalence of noncoronary (OR 1.55) and generalized (OR 2.57) atherosclerosis compared with having a high-energy breakfast, independently of traditional and dietary cardiovascular risk factors. Modification of eating patterns is a low-cost approach for primary prevention with potentially large benefits for health.
References
Uzhova, I. et al. The importance of breakfast in atherosclerosis disease: insights from the PESA study. J. Am. Coll. Cardiol. 70, 1833–1842 (2017)
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Fernanández-Ruiz, I. Start your day with a high-energy breakfast. Nat Rev Cardiol 14, 696 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrcardio.2017.164
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nrcardio.2017.164