A High-Protein Breakfast Prevents Body Fat Gain, Through Reductions in Daily Intake and Hunger, in “Breakfast Skipping” Adolescents

Objective:

The purpose of this study was to examine whether the daily consumption of normal-protein (NP) vs. high-protein (HP) breakfast meals improves appetite control, food intake, and body composition in “breakfast skipping” young people with overweight/obesity.

Methods:

Fifty-seven adolescents (age: 1961 years; BMI: 29.764.6 kg m22) completed a 12-week randomized controlled trial in which the adolescents consumed either a 1,464 kJ NP breakfast (13 g protein) or a HP breakfast (35 g protein) or continued to skip breakfast (CON). Pre- and post-study appetite, food intake, body weight, and body composition were assessed.

Results:

Time-by-group interactions (P<0.05) were detected for body fat mass, daily intake, and perceived hunger. Specifically, HP prevented fat mass gains over the 12 weeks (20.460.5 kg) vs. CON (11.660.9 kg; P50.02), whereas NP did not (10.360.5 kg). HP led to reductions in daily intake (21,7246954 kJ) vs. CON (11,5566745 kJ; P50.03), whereas NP did not (14946213 kJ). Lastly, only the HP group experienced reductions in daily hunger vs. CON (P<0.05). However, when directly comparing the HP vs. NP groups, no differences were detected in any outcomes.

Conclusions:

The daily addition of a HP breakfast improved indices of weight management as illustrated by the prevention of body fat gain, voluntary reductions in daily intake, and reductions in daily hunger in breakfast skipping adolescents with overweight/obesity.

Reference:

Heather J. Leidy, Heather A. Hoertel, Steve M. Douglas, Kelly A. Higgins, and Rebecca S. Shafer. A High-Protein Breakfast Prevents Body Fat Gain, Through Reductions in Daily Intake and Hunger, in “Breakfast Skipping” Adolescents. Obesity (2015) 00, 00–00. doi:10.1002/oby.21185. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/oby.21185/abstract