ARS | Publication request: The association of pre-sweetened or non-presweetened ready to eat cereal or other breakfast with nutrient intake, diet quality, and body weight of children aged 1 to 8 years: NHANES 1999-2002

Submitted to: Journal Of The American Dietetic Association
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: May 1, 2008
Publication Date: September 1, 2008
Citation: O'Neil, C., Nicklas, T.A., Cho, S.S., Hasza, D. 2008. The association of pre-sweetened or non-presweetened ready to eat cereal or other breakfast with nutrient intake, diet quality, and body weight of children aged 1 to 8 years: NHANES 1999-2002 [abstract]. Journal Of The American Dietetic Association. 108(9):A112.

Technical Abstract: Ready-to-eat-cereal (RTEC) has been associated with improved nutrient intake and weight status; presweetened ready-to-eat cereal (PSRTEC) has not been evaluated separately. Nutrient intakes, mean adequacy ratios (MAR) (average percentage of the Estimated Average Requirement from 24-hour recalls of 13 vitamin and minerals), and weight of PSRTEC, non-presweetened ready-to-eat-cereal (NPSRTEC), and other breakfast (OB) consumers were compared. Means+standard error were generated and PROC regression analysis was performed adjusting for covariates. Significant differences are presented as p<0.05. Breakfast varied by age: for 1-3 y vs. 4-8 y, 25% and 31% ate PSRTEC; 16% and 11% ate NPSRTEC, and 52% and 48% ate OB. Energy and total/added sugars were highest in PSRTEC; for 1-3 y total/added sugars were 9.5% and 5.7% of total energy, and for 4-8 y total/added sugars were 7.6% and 5.1%, respectively. Total fat was lowest in 1-3 y PSRTEC and 4-8 y NPSRTEC consumers. Vitamins B6 & B12, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, and folate were higher in RTEC than OB consumers. Calcium, potassium (4-8 y only), magnesium, iron, and phosphorus were highest in NPSRTEC consumers compared to the two other groups. For 1-3 y, MAR was higher in NPSRTEC than OB consumers. For 4-8 y, MAR was higher in RTEC than OB consumers. Body Mass Index (BMI) in OB was higher than that in PSRTEC for 2-3 y. Nutrient profiles vary depending on the type of breakfast consumed.