Is breakfast skipping associated with physical activity among U.S. adolescents? A cross-sectional study of adolescents aged 12-19 years, National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES).

Objective: To examine the association between breakfast skipping and physical activity among US adolescents aged 12-19 years.

Design: A cross-sectional study of nationally representative 2007-2008 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) data.

Setting: Breakfast skipping was assessed by two 24 h dietary recalls. Physical activity was self-reported by participants and classified based on meeting national recommendations for physical activity for the appropriate age group. Multiple logistic regression analysis was used to model the association between breakfast skipping and physical activity while controlling for confounders.

Subjects: A total of 936 adolescents aged 12-19 years in the USA.

Results: After adjusting for family income, there was no association between breakfast skipping and meeting physical activity guidelines for age among adolescents aged 12-19 years (OR = 0.95, 95% CI 0.56, 1.32).

Conclusions: Findings from the study differ from previous research findings on breakfast skipping and physical activity. Therefore, further research that uses large, nationally representative US samples and national recommended guidelines for physical activity is needed.