Breakfast With Cereals Prevent Overweight in Children

According to recent studies, regular breakfast with cereal each day was associated with a healthy weight for children. But in fact 1 in 4 children in America are still living in the rules that breakfast does not have to be done.

"Cereal is a breakfast option for a very good, simple, and has the essential nutrients needed by children, especially low-income children, who tend to have health problems," said study leader Dr Lana Frantzen, who worked at the Dairy MAX, a regional council dairy company in Grand Prairie, Texas.

Previous studies have linked breakfast with keeping the body mass index (BMI) lower from time to time. The new study looked at the role that breakfast, especially with seral, has a role in weight loss and nutrition within the scope of the children.

Frantzen and her co-authors interviewed 625 school-age children on an ongoing basis from grade 4 to grade 6 up to in San Antonio. Once a year they ask the children to recall what they had eaten during the previous 3 days and calculate their BMI, a measure which relates weight and height.

When they were grade 4, 64% said their breakfast every day, while only 42% are breakfast every day when they were in Grade 6.

Data from 3 days / year for 3 years, a total of 9 days, researchers found that children who ate breakfast cereal for 4 days from 9 days tend to be in the 95 percentile for BMI, which is regarded as overweight. Whereas children who eat cereal as a breakfast menu for 9 full days, results measurement is in the 65th percentile of BMI, which is considered normal weight.

32% of students in grade 4 had no breakfast at all, 25% breakfast with menu other than cereals, and about 43% with a breakfast cereal.

Cereal is the most common breakfast menu. Children who had breakfast with cereals reported but not usually have a breakfast menu such as fried eggs, bread, etc..

Frantzen research team reported in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Diabetics, only 70% had 3 days cereals menu once, but in each of them ate cereal, their nutritional intake is higher than other children.

Children who eat cereals get vitamin D, B3, B12, riboflavin, calcium, iron, potassium adn much more than those eating less cereal or even not at all.

"Cereals fortified with various vitamins and minerals, and combined with milk would be a source of calcium, potassium, and vitamin D are very good," said Frantzen, as quoted from the Telegraph, Friday (04/12/2013).

"I think this is an excellent advancement of knowledge about the overall importance of breakfast," said Dr. Matthew Haemer, Director of Nutrition and Fitness at Children's Hospital Colorado, Aurora.

The study results show no relationship between cereals and BMI, however, is still not known how the process. Haemer recommend parents to choose cereal as a breakfast menu fast, easy, and high in fiber, and low in fat.