Dubois, LiseGirard, ManonPotvin Kent, MoniqueFarmer, AnnaTatone-Tokuda, Fabiola2023-08-182023-08-182009Dubois, L., Girard, M., Potvin Kent, M., Farmer, A., Tatone-Tokuda, F. (2009). Breakfast skipping is associated with differences in meal patterns, macronutrient intakes, and overweight among pre-school children. Public Health Nutrition, 12, 1, 19-28. https://doi.org/10.1017/s13689800080018941368-9800https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/public-health-nutrition/article/breakfast-skipping-is-associated-with-differences-in-meal-patterns-macronutrient-intakes-and-overweight-among-preschool-children/65AF33DDC1BF186B350F8F09BBF287BDhttp://hdl.handle.net/10393/45301https://doi.org/10.20381/ruor-29507Objectives: To examine the association between skipping breakfast, daily energy, macronutrients and food intakes, and BMI in pre-school children. Design: A cross-sectional study using information on children’s food consumption and measured height and weight. Energy and macronutrient intakes of the children were derived from parent/day-care attendant’s responses to 24 h recall interviews and eating behaviour questionnaires. Setting: Data obtained from a representative sample (n 2103) of children born in Quebec (Canada) in 1998. Subjects: One thousand five hundred and forty-nine children, with a mean age of 49 (SD 3·12) months. Results: Ten per cent of children ate breakfast on fewer than 7 days per week. This behaviour was associated with a lower diet quality and concentrated energy intakes through higher protein intakes at lunch and the consumption of snacks higher in energy and carbohydrate in the afternoon and evening; yet total daily energy intakes were not significantly different from those of pre-school children who ate breakfast every day. Breakfast skippers’ mean BMI increased as intake of energy, carbohydrates or servings of grain products increased; however, this was not the case for breakfast eaters. When Cole’s cut-off for overweight/obesity was used, overweight/obesity in breakfast skippers was related to the dinner-time consumption of approximately 3000 kJ (700 kcal) or more for energy intake, approximately 100 g or more of carbohydrates, or approximately 3 servings or more of grain products. Conclusions: Eating breakfast every day is associated with having a healthy body weight, likely due to a more even distribution of energy intake across meals throughout the day.enBreakfastBody weightNutritionChildrenArticle10.1017/S1368980008001894