Effects of Normal vs. Protein‐rich Breakfast Meals on Appetite Control & Energy intake in Overweight ‘Breakfast Skipping’ Teen Girls

Purpose To examine the effects of normal protein (PN) vs. protein‐rich (PR) breakfast meals on appetite, satiety, and energy intake in overweight ‘breakfast skipping’ (BS) teen girls. Methods 10 overweight girls (age 15±1y; BMI 94±1%ile; BS 6±1x/wk) completed a BS test day, then began consuming, in randomized order, 500kcal breakfast meals containing 15% (PN) or 40% (PR) of energy as protein at home for 6 days. On the 7 th day of each pattern, the participants came to the lab to complete their respective breakfast pattern followed by 4‐h repeated appetite & satiety questionnaires and blood sampling for analysis of glucose, insulin, ghrelin, & PYY. Ad libitum lunch & 24‐h intake assessments were also performed. Results Both meals led to overall post‐breakfast (i.e., 4‐h area under the curve) and pre‐lunch reductions in hunger & increases in fullness (p<0.01) compared to BS. Additionally, the PR breakfast led to lower pre‐lunch hunger (p<0.05) & higher pre‐lunch fullness (p<0.05) vs. PN. Hormonal responses are under analysis. No differences in ad libitum lunch or 24‐h energy intake (BS: 1977±255; PN: 1942±106; PR: 1891±182 kcal/d) were observed. Conclusion The daily addition of 500kcal breakfast meals, especially containing protein‐rich foods, leads to beneficial changes in appetite and satiety throughout the morning hours with no observed increases in daily energy intake. Support: NIH‐K12HD052027‐04