The Association between Breakfast Skipping Combined with Alcohol Consumption and the Risk of Metabolic Syndrome

Abstract

Skipping breakfast has been considered a representative of health compromising behavior, but there is little information about the combined effects of breakfast skipping and other unhealthy habits, especially drinking alcohol. This cross-sectional study investigated health compromising behaviors and the association with metabolic syndrome. The participants were 385 adults living in urban areas. The mean age was 45.71 (±6.93 years). The data were collected from blood biochemical tests, blood pressure measurements, waist circumference measurements, and questionnaires. The results showed that the alcohol drinking rate in men (28.3%) was higher than that in women (4.0%), and the percentage of skipping breakfast in men (46.0%) was also higher than that in women (38.4%). The breakfast skipping was more prevalent in participants under the age of 40 years (p=0.007), and was related to other health compromising behaviors. Multiple logistic regressions identified current alcohol drinking as the most significant factor related to breakfast skipping (1.806, 95% CI=1.08-3.03). The other significant factors included an age younger than ages under 40 years (1.994, 95%CI=1.21-3.29) and a body mass index of more than 25 kg/m² (1.920, 95%CI=1.20-3.08). For the combination of skipping breakfast with drinking alcohol, the highest odds ratio for metabolic syndrome was found (5.720, 95%CI=1.71-19.10). In conclusion, the combined skipping breakfast with drinking alcohol may pose a greater risk for metabolic syndrome.