Is snack consumption associated with meal skipping in children and adolescents? The CASPIAN-IV study

Abstract

Purpose The present inquiry set to assess the relationship between snack consumption and meal skipping in Iranian children and adolescents. methods Overall, 14,880 students, aged 6-18 years, were selected via multistage cluster sampling method from rural and urban areas of 30 provinces of Iran. A validated questionnaire of food behaviors including questions on snacks consumption and taking/skipping meals was completed. Consuming and skipping meals and their related factors were reported in both crude and adjusted models. Results Overall, 13,486 students with a mean age of 12.47 +/- 3.36 years completed the study (90.6 participation rate). Among them, 32.08, 8.89, and 10.90 skipped breakfast, lunch, and dinner, respectively. Compared to their counterpart groups, the frequency of meal skipping was higher in girls, urban inhabitants, and students in higher school grades (P < 0.05). Snack consumption was associated with an increased odds ratio of meal skipping in many types of snack groups. Conclusions Meal skipping and snack consumption were frequent among Iranian children and adolescents. Evidence based interventions are proposed to improve the students' eating habits.