Teens who eat a high-protein lean pork breakfast may consume fewer sugary snacks later in the day, according to a newly released study conducted by the University of Missouri.

The recent 12-week study suggests that, for teenagers, eating a protein-rich breakfast that includes lean ham or pork sausage reduces daily hunger, increases daily fullness, improves morning blood sugar control and leads to less late-day snacking, thus reducing calories from fat and sugar. This is especially true for teens who normally skip breakfast altogether.

Like what you're reading? Subscribe to the National Hog Farmer Weekly Preview newsletter and get the latest news delivered right to your inbox every Monday!

“This new Pork Checkoff-funded study further validates the important role of high-protein lean pork in a balanced diet,” says Conley Nelson, National Pork Board president and Algona, IA, producer. “Pork producers work hard to provide consumers with healthy, affordable protein choices for the family table. Parents can feel good about including pork as part of the morning meal because it provides healthy fuel to support their teenagers' busy day while reducing the urge to reach for empty-calorie afternoon snacks.”

From 20 to 30% of U.S. adolescents do not eat breakfast and are dubbed “breakfast skippers,” a habit associated with excess body weight, according to The 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans Teens who were assigned as part of the study to eat a high-protein breakfast experienced a decreased intake of about 400 calories later in the day.

However, those who continued to skip breakfast, as well as those who ate the same number of calories for breakfast but had much less protein, did not reduce daily intake. The 400-calorie decrease seen in the high-protein breakfast group was due to voluntarily eating fewer high-fat/high-sugar snacks in the late afternoon and evening.

Read more of this report at www.pork.org.
 

You might also like:

New Mandatory Reporting is Good, but not without Pain

Does H7N9 Chinese Flu Pose a Threat for Pigs?