Relevance of chronotype for eating patterns in adolescents

Abstract

During adolescence, a shift from morningness to eveningness occurs, yet school continues to start early in the morning. Hence, adolescents are at risk for social jetlag, i.e. a discrepancy between biological and social timing. It remains to be determined whether chronotype associates with daily and daytime-specific eating patterns during this potentially critical period. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate whether chronotype is decisive for daily eating patterns [total energy intake (TEI, kcal), total macronutrient intake (% of TEI), eating occasion frequency (n/day), meal frequency (n/day), snack frequency (n/day), duration of nightly fasting], or daytime-specific eating patterns [morning (before 11 am) energy intake (% of TEI), morning macronutrient intake (% of morning energy intake), regular breakfast skipping (no morning energy intake at least on 2 of 3 days, yes/no), evening (after 6 pm) energy intake (% of TEI), evening macronutrient intake (% of evening energy intake), regular dinner skipping (no evening energy intake at least on 2 of 3 days, yes/no)] in German adolescents. Chronotype was assessed by use of the Munich Chronotype Questionnaire and is defined as the midpoint of sleep corrected for sleep-debt accumulated over the workweek (the later the midpoint of sleep, the later the chronotype). A total of 223 participants (10-18 years) provided 346 questionnaires and concurrent 3-day weighed dietary records. Associations between chronotype and eating patterns were analyzed cross-sectionally using multivariable linear and logistic mixed-effects regression models. Adolescents with earlier and later chronotypes did not differ in their daily eating patterns. With respect to daytime-specific eating patterns, 1 h delay in chronotype was associated with 4.0 (95% CI 2.5-6.6) greater odds of regular breakfast skipping (p < 0.0001). In addition, later chronotype was associated with higher evening energy intake (p = 0.0009). In conclusion, our data show that a later chronotype among adolescents is associated with a shift of food consumption toward later times of the day. Hence, adolescents' eating patterns appear to follow their internal clock rather than socially determined schedules.

Associations between the Chronotypes and Eating Habits of Hong Kong School-Aged Children

“…The sole relevant study was conducted by Roßbach et al, which investigated the association between chronotype and skipping breakfast in a mixed sample of 223 individuals aged 10-18 in Germany [47]. Skipping breakfast was more often observed in children and adolescents with a later chronotype.…”

“…Individuals with different chronotypes were also found to have unique timing-related eating patterns [48,49]. The literature provides evidence for this assumption that the food intake behaviors of evening-type people shift towards later mealtimes in accordance with their later circadian preference compared with morning-type individuals [46,47,50]. However, the association between morning-type and skipping breakfast/having a small breakfast was no longer different in girls when total sleep time on school days was taken into account.…”

Chronotype and its association with lifestyle, health-related quality of life and academic performance among Japanese nursing students: A cross-sectional study

“…The present study also revealed an association between skipping meals and chronotype. Many previous studies have reported an association between skipping breakfast and evening type (27,44,45). Skipping breakfast is unhealthy eating behavior which contributes to metabolic disorders including obesity and diabetes (46,47).…”

“…Chronotype, the tendency towards morningness or eveningness underlying the circadian system, is in uenced by age, gender(1), genetics (24), and external environment/circumstances including light exposure (25) and sociocultural conditions (26). Late chronotype is often accompanied by unique eating behaviors (e.g., breakfast skipping, evening energy intake) (27,28), which result in metabolic disorders including obesity and diabetes (29,30). In addition, late chronotype is associated with poor mental health (31,32) and poor academic achievement in university students (33).…”

The Association Between Circadian Rhythms and Paediatric Obesity

“…In accordance with sleep-wake cycle regulation, children who show increased evening caloric intake subsequently have little to no morning caloric intake. This dysregulation of meal timing in dark-light exposure has been shown to be positively correlated to an increase in weight gain, adiposity, and overall BMI scores in paediatric populations [20][21][22][23][24]. Many studies posit that perhaps these later feeding times could be a psychological result of chronotypes (nocturnal versus early bird tendencies): adolescents with evening chronotypes reportedly have phase delays in diurnal eating patterns, resulting in a higher prevalence of breakfast skipping and a shift in energy intake towards later in the day [24,25].…”