UAE: Skipping breakfast could lead to behaviour issues among kids, doctors warn

UAE: Skipping breakfast could lead to behaviour issues among kids, doctors warn

Experts point out that it is also not enough to eat just any kind of food for breakfast — it has to be balanced and nutrient-rich

Published: Fri 23 Sep 2022, 4:53 PM

Children who do not eat their breakfast properly could be at an increased risk of developing psychosocial behavioural problems, doctors in the UAE have said, citing new research.

Skipping breakfast could mean missing the vital nutrients that supply energy not only to the body — but also to the brain, said Arfa Banu Khan, clinical psychologist at Aster Clinic, Bur Dubai.

This health concern was highlighted in a recent study published in the journal Frontiers in Nutrition.

Supporting the research findings, Khan said that in her clinical practice, a number of children who came to her with behavioural issues did have poor eating and sleeping habits.

"Most of them usually skipped or postponed breakfast and had it together as 'brunch' — clubbing of breakfast and lunch together," she said.

Experts also pointed out that it is not enough to eat just any kind of food for breakfast.

"It is important that we have a balanced, nutrient-rich, energy-supplying breakfast. The study clearly emphasises this. It found that among people who ate breakfast, the ones who had