Association between frequency of breakfast eating and obesity in Korean adolescents

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to examine whether the frequency of breakfast eating was related with overweight/obesity in Korean adolescents. We analyzed the data collected in the 5[th] KYRBWS, in which 72,399 adolescents participated in 2009. We assessed the association between frequency of breakfast eating and body mass index by using multivariate logistic regression analysis. A total of 20,962[54.9%] boys and 18,479[54.0%] girls skipped breakfast 7 days[all days] per week at baseline. For boys, the odds ratios[ORs] between being overweight and frequency of breakfast eating were 1.040 for 3-5 times per week, 1.092 for 1-2 time[s] per week, 1.059 for no breakfast per week, compared to 6-7 times per week[p>0.05]. The ORs between being obese and frequency of breakfast eating were 1.011 for 3-5 times per week, 0.968 for 1-2 time[s] per week, and 0.932 for no breakfast per week, compared to 6-7 times per week[p>0.05]. For girls, the ORs between being overweight and frequency of breakfast eating were 0.990 for 3-5 times per week, 0.992 for 1-2 time[s] per week, 1.019 for no breakfast per week, compared to 6-7 times per week[p>0.05]. The ORs between being obese and frequency of breakfast eating were 1.075 for 3-5 times per week, 0.946 for 1-2 time[s] per week, and 0.941 for no breakfast per week, compared to 6-7 times per week[p>0.05]. The frequency of breakfast eating has no correlation with overweight/obesity in Korean adolescents