Without breakfast, children lack nutrients for growth and development

Experts: Breakfast is important for children
There are several reasons why children can neglect their breakfast. For example, the children have not slept enough and therefore come out of bed badly, so that the affected then often have no time for a decent breakfast. Of course, there are also children who are simply not hungry in the morning or parents who have no time in the morning to make breakfast for their children. Researchers have now found that if children regularly skip their breakfasts, they will not have enough nutrients to grow and develop.

Researchers at King's College London found in their study that children who skip their breakfast can be inhibited in their growth and development. The doctors published a press release on the results of their study.

A healthy breakfast is important for a good start to the day. Researchers found that having children's breakfasts is very important because they would otherwise be low on nutrients for growth and development. (Photo: Monkey Business - fotolia)

The breakfast contains many important nutrients
Eating kids breakfast every day results in higher daily intake of important key nutrients such as folate (folate is important for the development of genetic material), calcium, iron and iodine (important for the development of thyroid function) compared to not breakfasting children, explain the researchers.

Experts analyzed data from more than 1,600 children for their study
For the study, the research team used so-called food diaries, which were part of the National Diet and Nutrition Survey Rolling Program. In the period from 2008 to 2012, this program examined a group of 802 children between the ages of four and ten and a group of 884 children between the ages of eleven and eighteen.

Over 31 percent of children without breakfast suffered from low food intake
Nutrient intake was assessed for its health effects using the present database. Under a breakfast, the experts understood when more than 100 calories were taken between six and nine o'clock. Researchers found that about 31.5 percent of children who did not eat breakfast had lower levels of iron intake, compared to 4.4 percent of children who had breakfast.

Children consume more folic acid, calcium, vitamin C and iodine through breakfast
In addition, 19 percent of children without breakfast also consumed too little calcium, compared to 2.9 percent for children who had breakfast. 21.5 percent of children without breakfast ingested too little iodine, compared to 3.3 percent in children who had breakfast. None of the children who ate breakfast daily had such low intake of folate that it was below the recommended nutrient intake. But 7.3 percent of children without a breakfast had too low a folate intake. The analysis showed that on days with breakfast in younger children (four to ten years) a significantly increased intake of folic acid, calcium, vitamin C and iodine can be detected.

Some influences could have affected the results
The results could have been influenced by the influence of the parents. There is also the possibility that the so-called food diaries, especially for the older children, contained incorrect information, restrict the authors. In addition, some analyzes had been repeated to check implausible results in the energy supply.

Breakfast is the key element in the healthy diet of children?
"This study proves that breakfast is a key element for parents when it comes to making sure that children get the nutrients they need," explains Dr. Gerda Pot from King's College London. Other studies that examine specific foods and the quality of nutrition could identify effects of different types of breakfast. In addition, it could be determined what kind of breakfast children will take at which age, the experts explain.

Girls eat less often than boys
In addition, the study found that 6.5 percent of four to ten-year-olds neglected breakfast every day. In the case of eleven to eighteen-year-old participants, this value was already close to 27 percent and girls generally missed their breakfast more often than boys, the scientists explain. It was also found that the children of higher-income families consumed their breakfast more regularly each day. (As)