TABLE 3.
Systematic reviews of breakfast cereals and obesity1
| Authors, year (reference) |
|||
| Timlin and Pereira, 2007 (265) | de le Hunty and Ashwell, 2007 (84) | Kosti et al., 2010 (248) | |
| Study type | 2 prospective | 6 XS | 10 XS |
| 2 RCTs | 2 prospective | 5 prospective | |
| 1 RCT | 6 RCTs | ||
| Intervention/outcome | RTEC consumption at breakfast/BMI, weight loss | RTEC consumption frequency/BMI, weight loss, risk of becoming overweight | RTEC consumption at breakfast or other meals/BMI, WHR, body weight |
| Subjects, n | 19,225 adults (prospective) | 205 children (XS) | 8272 children (XS) |
| 261 adults (RCTs) | 2379 children (prospective) | 4754 children (prospective) | |
| 11,336 adults (XS) | 20,670 adults (XS) | ||
| 17,881 adults (prospective) | 119,054 adults (prospective) | ||
| 52 adults (RCT) | 535 adults (RCTs) | ||
| Study population | Men and women; normal, overweight and obese adults; US, Finland | Males and females, children 4–15 y, normal and overweight; US, UK, Spain, France | Males and females; normal, overweight, and obese; US, Sweden, Greece, UK, Finland |
| Quality2 | Neutral | Positive | Neutral |
| Results | Inverse association between RTEC consumption and BMI in XS studies | Inverse association between RTEC consumption and BMI in all XS studies, although not all statistically significant. In prospective study in adults, 13-y risk of becoming overweight was lower for those eating RTEC daily (OR: 0.88; 95% CI: 0.76, 1.0). | Inverse association between RTEC consumption and BMI and % body fat in all XS studies and prospective studies and RCTs (in children: only when accompanied by nutrition education) |
| No significant effects in intervention trials | |||
1
RCT, randomized controlled trial; RTEC, ready-to-eat breakfast cereal; WHR, waist-to-hip ratio; XS, cross-sectional.
2
Determined by using the American Dietetic Association quality rating tool (11): positive, neutral, poor.