(ORDO NEWS) — According to researchers from Spain and the UK, skipping breakfast altogether just like eating out has a negative impact on the psychosocial health of children under 14 years of age.
In addition, the authors of the study determined which foods are best for children to eat in the morning to minimize the likelihood of psychosocial health problems.
Although there is no generally accepted definition of psychosocial health today, it is customary to include a whole range of characteristics, including self-esteem, mood, prosocial behavior, and the presence of affective disorders.
At the same time, affective disorders (anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, and others) are considered the leading causes of morbid conditions and disability among children and adolescents around the world, because their foundations are laid precisely at this age.
This means that early identification of the causes and aggravating factors of such complications is a priority for timely treatment.
An international team of researchers from Spain and the UK decided to find out how adherence to a healthy diet, namely the presence, place and quality of breakfast, affects the development of psychosocial complications in children aged four to 14 years.
The authors used data from the Spanish National Health Survey 2017, which included a survey of 3772 children and their parents (or guardians).
In examining the survey data, the researchers found that eating breakfast outside the home is almost as harmful as not eating at all in the morning.
Harmful here refers to an increased risk of developing behavioral psychosocial problems. Scientists attribute this to the fact that eating out is often less nutritious and healthier than eating at home.
Nevertheless, it is too early to completely exclude the social and psychological impact of breakfast at home (with or without family).
The authors emphasize the need for further research to understand the causal relationships behind their observations.
After all, despite the large sample, only 118 children systematically ate out, and only 41 respondents completely skipped breakfast.
The results of the survey also allowed us to determine which set of foods consumed in the morning is associated with the least likelihood of behavioral problems.
So, it’s definitely worth including coffee, milk, tea, chocolate, cocoa, yogurt, bread, cereals and pastries in the morning diet.
At the same time, avoiding eggs, cheese and ham, on the contrary, reduced the likelihood of developing psychosocial health problems.
“Our results confirm the need to promote breakfast not only as part of a healthy lifestyle, but also about eating breakfast at home. In addition, to prevent psychosocial health problems in children, it is worth including dairy products and / or cereals in their breakfast, minimizing animal products high in saturated fat and cholesterol, ”concluded study lead author Dr. José Francisco López-Gil ( José Francisco López-Gil ), employee of the University of Castile-La Mancha in Cuenca (Spain).
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