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Higher breakfast glycaemic load is associated with increased metabolic syndrome risk in adolescent girls

Association between breakfast composition and metabolic syndrome components in adolescent girls

Authors:
Nicholl A, Du Heaume M, Mori TA, Beilin LJ, Oddy WH, Bremner AP, et al.

Authors notes:
British Journal of Nutrition. 2014;112(12):1974-1983

Keywords:
Adolescents, Breakfast, Glycaemic load, Metabolic syndrome, Raine Study

Abstract:
Almost all previous studies examining the associations between glycaemic load (GL) and metabolic syndrome risk have used a daily GL value.

The daily value does not distinguish between peaks of GL intake over the day, which may be more closely associated with the risk of the metabolic syndrome.

The aim of the present study was to investigate the cross-sectional associations between daily and mealtime measures of GL and metabolic syndrome risk, including metabolic syndrome components, in adolescents.

Breakfast GL was found to be predictive of the metabolic syndrome in girls, but not in boys.

Other meal GL values and daily GL were found to be not significant predictors of the metabolic syndrome.

When breakfast GL was examined in relation to each of the components of the metabolic syndrome in girls, it was found to be negatively associated with fasting HDL-cholesterol concentrations and positively associated with fasting TAG concentrations.

The results of the present study suggest that there may be an association between breakfast composition and metabolic syndrome components in adolescent girls.

These findings support further investigation into including lower-GL foods as part of a healthy breakfast in adolescence, particularly for girls.