• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.40 no.5
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• pp.451-462
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• 2007

This study was conducted to investigate breakfast consumption pattern in relation to diet quality and health outcomes of Korean adults. Data are from 2001 National Health and Nutrition Survey. Dietary information of 3406 adults aged $30{\sim}49$ years and their socio-demographic characteristics, blood lipid profile, fasting blood glucose, blood pressure, anthropometric measurements were analyzed. According to the breakfast consumption of the subjects, they were classified to breakfast skippers and eaters and the eaters' breakfast staple types were defined as RICE, BREAD, NOODLES, MIXED (mixed types including several grain-based dishes), and OTHERS. The proportions of breakfast consumption patterns were 18.4% for skippers, 71.1% for RICE, 2.6% for BREAD, 1.6% for NOODLES, 4.0% for MIXED, and 2.4% for OTHERS. Breakfast skippers had lower daily nutrients intake than breakfast eaters but their health outcomes did not differ from those of eaters. Instead, men with BREAD pattern had higher blood cholesterol and women in NOODLE pattern had higher blood glucose and lower HDL cholesterol. The BREAD pattern breakfast had higher energy contribution from fat and lower nutrient densities and the subjects in BREAD pattern had higher level of household income. Men's BREAD pattern breakfast consisted more animal products than that of women. There was high probability of undernutrition among women in NOODLE pattern and their mean household income was the lowest. From these results, in Korea, breakfast staple types have different food patterns and there was need for developing healthy food patterns appropriate to each staple type. The breakfast consumption pattern had influences on nutrient adequacy of the diet and health outcomes and seemed to represent socio-economic status. These could be used in doing nutrition education in community.