Breakfast cereal consumption and subjective reports of health by young adults.

The aim of the present research was to extend previous research which has shown that consumption of breakfast is associated with reports of better health. Previous research has confirmed this in samples in the age ranges from mid-twenties to early eighties. The present study considered young adults (189 volunteers, aged between 19-21 years, mean age 19.6 years) living at home. The results showed that skipping breakfast is associated with reports of poorer health and that regular breakfast cereal consumption is associated with better reported health. The effects of breakfast could not be explained by other health-related behaviours or other aspects of diet. Further research is now required to determine the mechanisms underlying this robust association to examine whether it is observed with objective indicators of health and specific diseases.