Kids who drink orange juice in the morning 'have a higher obesity risk'

Skipping breakfast makes kids more likely to snack later, study finds

Tuesday 29th May 2018 14:53 EDT
 

Parents should stop giving their children fruit juice at breakfast because it significantly increases their chances of being overweight or obese, a study has found. Those who drank a glass in the morning were one-and-a-half times more likely to be overweight than those who did not.

Skipping breakfast was also linked to weight gain as it made children more likely to snack during the day. Though fruit juices are frequently marketed as a healthy choice, they are often high in sugar and calories.

Previous research has shown a 350ml glass can contain up to nine teaspoons of sugar and is not as nutritious as unprocessed fruit.

The study, led by the Medical University of Vienna, looked at the breakfast habits of 650 children and compared them to their weight and height. Some 29 per cent were classed as overweight or obese on the body mass index.

Those who drank water at breakfast were 40 per cent less likely to be overweight, it found. Only four in ten children under the age of 13 ate breakfast every day, with around a third eating it fewer than five times a week and a similar proportion skipping it. The study found that those who did eat breakfast were three pounds lighter on average than those who skipped it.


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