Skipping breakfast and getting irregular sleep could be the reason for excess weight gain amongst children, study suggests.
-A recent research, conducted by University College London, evaluated the Body Mass Index (BMI) of children (aged between 3 to 11) during the first ten years of their life.
-The study considered data of about 19,244 families in the UK over a period of time (September 2000 to January 2002).
-The study suggested that children with disturbed routines, irregular sleeping patterns and ones who skipped breakfast were worst effected and were found to be obese due to increased appetite and consumption of energy dense foods.
-Researchers in the study identified four groups on the basis of weight development; stable over-weight BMI (83.3%), moderate increasing BMI (13.1%), steeply increasing BMI (2.5%) and obese BMI range(0.6%).
-The study suggested that overweight children were found to be associated with poorer mental health that could extend to their adolescence and adulthood.
-Findings were published in Journal Pediatrics
Source: Journal Pediatrics