Academic Performance In School Children Research Articles

Before School Exercise Effects on Fitness and Academic Performance in Schoolchildren: A Retrospective Case-Controlled Study

Background/Purpose: Before school exercise programs (BSEPs) give students time for breakfast and add time to their daily physical activity. However, the effects of BSEP on physical fitness and academic achievement in the classroom remain unclear. The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of BSEP on cardiorespiratory fitness and academic performance among fourth- and fifth-grade students. Method: A retrospective case-controlled design was used in this study. Fourth and fifth graders (N = 84) were participants, half signed up for BSEP that met once a week for 10 weeks. A retrospectively case-controlled comparison group was generated from the classmates of those in BSEP in the same school. All students took PACER and statewide academic performance assessments. Multivariate analysis of covariance for student cardiorespiratory fitness, and mathematics and reading, were conducted, adjusting for pretest performances. Analysis/Results: There were improvements for both groups in academic performances and cardiorespiratory fitness. The cardiorespiratory fitness and reading test improvements were greater in the BSEP group than those in the comparison group, controlling for their pretests. However, there was no significant difference in student mathematics test performances. Conclusion: Students in BSEP group benefited from participating in the program with greater improvement in cardiorespiratory and reading test performances than the comparison group. These findings suggested that providing a BSEP once a week for 45 min may be beneficial to fourth and fifth graders.

Evaluation of blood lead levels by atomic absorption spectrometry in school going children of northern areas of Pakistan.

To evaluate blood lead levels and assess their correlation with academic performance in school children. The cross-sectional study was conducted at the Department of Chemical Pathology and Endocrinology, Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, Rawalpindi, Pakistan, from January to December, 2017, and comprised school children in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, and Hajira, Azad Jammu and Kashmir. About 5 ml of venous blood was collected in potassium-ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid tubes for lead levels, haemoglobin and plasma ferritin. The preceding three years' academic performance, rated as excellent, good, fair and poor, of the subjects was categorised on a specifically-designed proforma. Data was analysed using SPSS 24. Of the 400 subjects, 205 (50.25%) were females. The overall mean age was 9.15±2.8 years. Mean level of lead was 4.3±2.6 µg/dL, and difference in values was significant between children of Hajira and Rawalpindi (p<0.05). Mean haemoglobin was 12.9±0.919g/dL and mean ferritin was 49.17±16.0ng/ml. Of the total, 85(21.3%) showed excellent school performance, 162(40.5%) good, 113(28.3%) fair and 40(10%) showed poor performance. Significant negative association was found between school performance and mean blood lead level (p>0.05). No significant difference was found in terms of gender and age with school performance of both regions. Majority of school going children in northern Pakistan were found to have lead levels ≤ 5µg/dL which is a level of concern as it is inversely related to academic performance.

School vision screening programmes in reducing uncorrected refractive error among children in Low and Middle-Income countries-LMIC (systematic review)

ackground: The prevalence of uncorrected refractive error among school-age children is on the rise with detrimental effect on academic performance and socio-economic status of those affected. School vision screening programmes appear to be an effective way of identifying children with uncorrected refractive errors so early intervention can be made. Despite the increasing popularity of school vision screening programmes over the past few years, there is a lot of debate on its effectiveness in reducing the proportion of children with uncorrected refractive error in the long term, especially in settings where resources are limited. Some studies argue that school vision screening programmes are effective while other studies have reported otherwise. The purpose of this systematic review was to assess the effectiveness of school vision screening programmes in reducing uncorrected refractive error among children in low and middle income countries using evidence from published studies. Methods and findings: A comprehensive and systematic strategy was used to search various databases including PubMed, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) which contains the Cochrane Eyes and vision Trial Register, the Cochrane Library, Medline (1980-2018), CINAHL, Academic Search Premier, Web of Science, the WHO’s Library Information System, Africa-Wide and Scopus. The search was restricted to articles published in English. Randomized control trials, cross-sectional studies, case-control studies and cohort studies were included in this review. Participants included school children with refractive error. Full-text review of search results, data extraction and risk of bias assessment was done by two independent reviewers. The certainty of the evidence was assessed using the GRADE approach and data were pooled using the random-effect model. Thirty studies met the inclusion criteria. This review found moderate certainty evidence indicating that school vision screenings may be effective in reducing uncorrected refractive error among school children by 81% (95% CI: 77%; 84%), 24% (95% CI: 13%; 35%) and 20% (95% CI: 18%; 22%) at two, six, and more than six months respectively after its introduction. Results: Results of this review also suggest that school vision screening may be effective in achieving 54% (95% CI: 25%; 100%), 57% (95% CI: 46%; 70%), 37% (95% CI: 26%; 52%), and 32% (95% CI: 14%; 72%) spectacle-wear compliance among school children at less than three months, at three months, at six months and at more than six months respectively after its introduction (low to moderate certainty evidence). This review further found moderate to high certainty evidence indicating that school vision screening, together with provision of spectacles, may be relatively cost effective, safe and has a positive impact on the academic performance of school children. Conclusion: The findings of this review show that school vision screening, together with provision of spectacles, may be a safe and cost-effective way of reducing the proportion of children with uncorrected refractive error, with long-term positive impact on academic performance of children. Most of the studies included in this review were, however, conducted in Asia. Research to investigate the effectiveness of school vision screening programmes in other parts of the world like Africa where few studies have been conducted is highly recommended

&lt;p&gt;Effect of Iodine Deficiency on Academic Performance of School Children in Dawro Zone, Southwest Ethiopia: A Prospective Cohort Study&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;Effect of Iodine Deficiency on Academic Performance of School Children in Dawro Zone, Southwest Ethiopia: A Prospective Cohort Study&lt;/p&gt;

Sleep patterns and sleep problems in a sample of Spanish schoolchildren

Sleep in children is essential for growth, emotional health and cognitive function. Although it has been described that poor sleep can seriously affect learning capacity, this relationship remains unclear. The purposes were to: (1) describe sleep patterns and sleep problems in schoolchildren; and (2) analyze the relationship between sleep quality and quantity and academic achievement. This study included 330 children aged 8–11 years and who had complete sleep data from 20 primary schools in 20 towns from the Cuenca province, Spain. The Spanish version of the Children’s Sleep Habits Questionnaire was used, and parents’ educational level, and academic achievement (final grades) were measured. Analysis of covariance models was used to assess differences in academic achievement by sleep problems and sleep duration categories, controlling for age and parents’ educational level. This study found that 6.1% of the children who participated in our study slept < 9 h/day, and 9.1% of them had sleep problems. Our results showed an inverse trend between sleeping < 9 h/day and having sleep problems with academic achievement, although these differences did not reach statistical significance (p > 0.05). In this study, a considerable proportion of the schoolchildren sleep less than recommended and have sleep problems. Sleep intervention may be important to prevent sleep problems and insufficient sleep in schoolchildren. Further research is needed to clarify the association of sleep insufficiency and problems with academic performance in schoolchildren.

Associations among Body Mass Index, sedentary behavior, physical activity, and academic performance in schoolchildren.

Physical inactivity and sedentary behavior are common among middle and high school grade children. This study aimed to determine the relationship among Body Mass Index (BMI), sedentary behavior, physical activity (PA), and overall academic performance of students. This is a cross sectional study; 357 students of mean age 12.65±1.68 years were enrolled. PA was subjectively assessed using the Physical Activity Questionnaire for Children (PAQ-C) and Godin Leisure-Time Exercise Questionnaire (GLTEQ). Sedentary behavior was assessed as hours spent on watching television, playing video games, computer use, and homework. Grade point average (GPA) was calculated to determine their overall academic performance. Participants were divided into two groups based on their GPA. Independent t-test was used to analyze BMI, sedentary time, and PA between the groups. Correlation analysis was performed to determine the associations among BMI, sedentary time, physical activity, and academic grades. There was no significant difference in BMI and the level of PA between the two groups. However, significant differences were observed in sedentary time (ST) spent watching television (P=0.04), total screen time (P=0.02), and total ST (P=0.002). There were weak negative correlations among BMI (r=-0.14, P<0.05), total screen time (r=-0.12, P<0.05), and academic scores; however, there was no association with any PA measures. A weak correlation was noted between BMI and sedentary characteristics, with respect to academic performance. As academic performance is negatively associated with body mass index and screen time, public health interventions are needed to reduce their time spent on leisure time sedentary activity, watching television, and computer use.

Longitudinal relationship of favorable weight change to academic performance in children

Although there is a growing consensus about the positive relationship between prevention of overweight/obesity and academic performance in children, relevant studies targeting the relationship between underweight and academic performance are scarce. This study aimed to examine the longitudinal relationship of favorable weight change to academic performance in schoolchildren. We analyzed 2-year longitudinal data derived from 197 seventh-grade children aged 12–13 years. Academic performance was assessed using the total grade points of five academic subjects. Body mass index (BMI) was calculated as body weight (kg)/height (m2). A significant interaction effect of baseline BMI and BMI changes over 2 years (B = −0.10, SE B = 0.03, β = −0.40, t = –3.37, p < 0.001) was noted after controlling for confounders such as socioeconomic status, afterschool learning duration, screen time, exercise habits, and cardiorespiratory fitness. When the centered baseline BMI was outside the interval [−2.49, 3.21], the slope of the change in BMI was significant (p < 0.05). Simple slope analyses revealed a positive relationship of weight gain when baseline BMI = mean − 1 SD (B = 0.40, SE B = 0.18, β = 0.31, t = 2.20, p = 0.03) and weight loss when baseline BMI = mean + 1 SD (B = −0.26, SE B = 0.13, β = −0.20, t = −1.97, p = 0.05) to total grade points of five school subjects. A split-group validation was performed and robust results of original analyses were detected (i.e., significant interaction effect of baseline BMI and BMI changes over 2 years (group A: B = −0.11, SE B = 0.05, β = −0.47, t = −2.39, p = 0.02; group B: B = −0.14, SE B = 0.05, β = −0.47, t = −2.78, p = 0.007). Favorable changes in weight status, i.e., weight loss in children with overweight/obesity and weight gain in children with mild underweight/underweight, have a positive influence on academic performance in children independent of socioeconomic factors, learning habits, screen time, exercise habits, and cardiorespiratory fitness.

Associations between meeting sleep, physical activity or screen time behaviour guidelines and academic performance in Australian school children

BackgroundCurrent guidelines suggest too little sleep, too little physical activity, and too much sedentary time are associated with poor health outcomes. These behaviours may also influence academic performance in school children. The primary purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between sleep, physical activity, or sedentary behaviours and academic performance in a school with a well-developed and integrated technology use and well-being program.MethodsThis was a cross-sectional survey of students (n = 934, Grades 5–12) in an Australian school with a bring-your-own device (tablet or laptop computer) policy. Students reported sleep, physical activity, and sedentary (screen and non-screen) behaviours. Academic performance was obtained from school records. Linear regressions were used to test the association between behaviours and academic performance outcomes.ResultsSeventy-four percent of students met sleep guidelines (9 to 11 h for children 5–13 years and 8 to 10 h for 14–17 year olds), 21% met physical activity guidelines (60 min of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity every day), and 15% met screen time guidelines (no more than 2 h recreational screen time per day); only 2% met all three. There were no associations between meeting sleep guidelines and academic performance; however later weekend bedtimes were associated with poorer academic performance (− 3.4 points on the Average Academic Index, 95%CI: − 5.0, − 1.7, p < .001). There were no associations between meeting physical activity guidelines and academic performance. Meeting screen guidelines was associated with higher Average Academic Index (5.8, 95%CI: 3.6, 8.0, p < .001), Maths 7.9, 95%CI: 4.1, 11.6, p < .001) and English scores (3.8, 95%CI: 1.8, 5.8, p < .001) and higher time in sedentary behaviours was associated with poorer academic performance, including total sedentary behaviours in hrs/day (5.8 points on Average Academic Index, 95%CI: 3.6, 8.0, p < .001. Meeting at least two of the three behaviour guidelines was associated with better academic performance.ConclusionsSleep and sedentary behaviours were linked to academic performance. School communities should emphasize comprehensive wellness strategies to address multiple behaviours to maximize student health and academic success.

Assessment of nutritional status and its effect on academic performance in school children of Jazan, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Background: Adolescence is the tender and vital period in the life of a person. It is a transitional stage of physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to legal adulthood. Nutrition is the prime requirement of the adolescents for their physical and mental growth. The aim of the study was to assess the nutritional status of the primary school going children in Jazan, KSA and to analyze the association of nutrition status with academic performance of school going children in Jazan, KSA. Methods: This study involved 4 schools chosen randomly from the government schools of Jazan. 7th and 8th class children were considered for the study. Required ethical approval bearing reference number 28943 dated 20/6/1440 was taken from the Institutional ethical committee. Study sample: 200 collection of the data: data collected from the schools of Jazan selected randomly in the school working hours.Results: 60% of the sample is in the age group 17-18 years. 30% of the sample were having more than 5 siblings. 16% of the parents were illiterates. The proportion of students taking milk products more than 3 times in the week (79.1%) were found to be performing well in the schools than the students consuming less than 3 days week. Strong association was found between performance of the students and parent’s education as the educated parents’ children were performing well.Conclusions: Good nutrition for the growing kids was found to be associated with academic performance of the students.

Air Pollution and Academic Performance in School Children

Air Pollution and Academic Performance in School Children

Executive functions in schoolchildren aged 7 to 14 years with Low academic performance of educational institution/Funciones ejecutivas en escolares de 7 a 14 años de edad con bajo rendimiento académico en una institución educativa

Una de las principales preocupaciones de los profesores tiene que ver con el bajo rendimiento académico de los estudiantes. Lograr identificar el origen de la dificultad es todo un reto por eso se analizan las funciones ejecutivas (FE) por ser ellas de gran utilidad y uso para el aprendizaje. Este estudio contó con una muestra de 30 estudiantes escolarizados con bajo rendimiento académico, a los cuales se les evaluaron las FE a través de las pruebas TMT, test de fluidez verbal y test de tarjetas de Wisconsin. El bajo rendimiento académico se identificó a través de la historia académica. Es un estudio de enfoque cuantitativo, tipo descriptivo – transversal y correlacional. La mayoría de los participantes tuvieron un desempeño por debajo de la media y desviación estándar en el test de cartas de Wisconsin en la medida errores, así como en el FAS fonológico y en el TMT parte B con algunas diferencias no significativas identificadas por edades en otras medidas de las pruebas. Existe relación estadísticamente significativa entre el automonitoreo y autocorrección y las FE: diseño de planes y programas y resolución eficiente de problemas en los participantes. También hay relación entre la edad y el desarrollo de la capacidad de resolución eficiente de problemas, así mismo con la capacidad de automonitoreo y autocorrección. A mayor diseño de planes y programas, mayor resolución eficiente de problemas. Existe necesidad de estudiar otras variables que incidan en el rendimiento académico de escolares. La rehabilitación cognitiva de las FE, ayudará en el logro escolar.

Solving the Acoustic Issue in Physical Education Settings

The audibility of teachers and peers is an essential factor in determining the academic performance of school children. However, acoustic conditions in physical education settings are less than optimal and have been viewed as “hostile listening environments” that undermine the learning of children in school. While typical classroom teachers are faced with many voice concerns, gymnasiums with poor acoustics, covered areas, and outdoor teaching environments can be more challenging to the voices of physical education teachers. They often rely on shouting instructions over noises and hope their students will hear and understand. This article reviews current acoustic research in classrooms and in physical education settings and future actions designed to improve sound issues and their related policies.

Effect of Terrorist Attack of December 16, 2014 on Academic Performance of School Children of Peshawar

&#x0D; &#x0D; &#x0D; The purpose of study was to determine the effect of traumatic events of December 16, 2014 on level of trauma of the children of Peshawar and the effect of traumatic experience their academics performance. Total sample consisted of two hundred (N=200) students with age range of 14-16 years (M=14.59, SD=1.128). Data was collected from the students of Army Public School and College System. Warsak road Peshawar and other three Schools on Warsak road included, Peshawar Public School, Peshawar Model School for Girls and Warsak Model School. Random sampling technique was used to recruit the study participant. Demographic information sheet, the Impact of Event Scale- Revised, Self-constructed questionnaire for measuring the Academic Performance of the students before and after traumatic experience of the students. Result showed that the terrorist attack effect the mental health of the students, students reported significant effect on their academic performance.&#x0D; &#x0D; &#x0D;

A School-Based Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial to Evaluate the Effectiveness of Nutrition Behavior Change Communication Interventions in Improving Nutritional Status and Academic Performance of Schoolchildren in South Ethiopia: Study Protocol

Background: School aged children in developing countries are vulnerable to malnutrition, which leads to stunting and can have adverse effects on mental development and academic performance at school. Despite several decades of work in improving childhood nutrition in Ethiopia, stunting remains a major public health concern with lack of evidence on its effect on school performance. The primary aim of this study is to addresses this gap by evaluating the effect of behavior change communication intervention on nutritional status and academic performance among school aged children in Meskan District of South Ethiopia.Methods: This school-based cluster randomized trial (c-RCT) compares the intervention arm with control arm. The intervention arm receives behavior change communication (BCC) on essential nutrition actions. The control arm receives only routine health and nutrition services. From a Meskan District, 10 clusters were selected and randomly assigned to the two study arms by randomization. The study participants will be children 10-15 years of age. Total sample size was 408 study participants. Anthropometric measurements, academic performance, nutritional knowledge, and dietary diversity will be measured at both baseline and end line. A behavior change and key poster message was providing based on essential nutrition actions for science teachers and students using class sessions and school visits. A binary logistic regression analysis will be used to identify independent predictors of nutritional status and academic performance of schoolchildren after controlling for confounding variables. The effect of BCC on micronutrient will be determined using generalized estimating equations (GEE) and or linear mixed effects models.Results: A total of 378 primary schoolchildren (10-15 years of age) were involved in the study giving a response rate of 93%. The mean age of the students was 12.8 years (SD ± 1.3 years). The prevalence of stunting and underweight was 16.9% and 37.3% respectively. The mean score of overall grades was 64.52 ± 8.45.Discussion: The findings of this study will provide sufficient evidence to develop policies and programs aimed to improve dietary diversity in children as well as nutritional knowledge (10-15 years) and to prevent micronutrient deficiencies and poor academic performance in school settings. It will also provide recommendations for strengthening the school nutrition component of behavior change communication in child health and nutrition programs.Trial registration: The study was retrospectively registered on October 28, 2016 and is available online at ClinicalTrials.gov (ID: NCT02956941).

Correlation between Academic Performance and Obesity in School-Children from Anand District

Background: Growing childhood obesity epidemic is concerning the health of future generation in any country. Today’s competitive world is increasing the never ending pressure on children to excel in academic performance to ensure bright future. Hence, it is the need of the hour to understand the correlation between obesity and academic performance for implementation of the policies related to obesity prevention and treatment.Methods: 1034 school children were taken randomly according to inclusion and exclusion criteria, and they were divided into two groups: a) 5-11 years and b) 12-18 years. BMI (BMI), Waist Circumference (WC), the Waist-Height ratio (WHtR) and SSFT (Sum of Skinfold thickness) were taken to measure obesity, and the class teacher evaluated academic performance.Results: The prevalence of obesity when assessed by WC revealed highest values as compared to Waist-Height ratio, IOTF-BMI and SSFT. Spearman correlation between obesity (WC) and academic performance revealed that there was a significant negative moderate correlation in urban boys (r = -0.4, p 0.05) correlation between obesity and academic performance in boys and girls of 12-18 years’ age-group.Conclusions: It is also concluded from the present study that obesity and academic performance of school children were negatively correlated in boys and girls of 5 -11 years of age but it was not found in 12-18 years of age. Influence of various confounding factors could not be isolated which could have also impacted the academic performance of the child.

The association between obesity and academic performance in youth: a systematic review.

Previous studies have found that obesity could influence academic performance. The aim of this study was to systematically review the scientific evidence on the association between obesity and academic performance in school children. A systematic review of English articles was undertaken by using databases PubMed/Medline, ERIC, LILACS, SciELO and Web of Science. Cross-sectional and longitudinal studies examining the association between obesity and academic performance in children and adolescents, published between January 1990 and December 2016, were included. Risk of bias was assessed by using Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology. Thirty-four studies (23 cross-sectional and 11 longitudinal) matched all inclusion criteria and were included. Seven studies were classified as low risk of bias, 23 as medium risk and four as high risk. After controlling for covariates such as socio-economic status, parental education and physical activity, the association between obesity and academic performance becomes uncertain for most of the studies (55.9%). Therefore, at present, there is insufficient evidence to support a direct link between obesity and poor academic performance in school age children. In order to clarify this issue, we need more longitudinal studies with adequate sample sizes and that control for potential confounders.

Iodine Deficiency Disorder and Its Association with Academic Performance Among Children in Jimma Town, Southwestern Ethiopia

Nutritional status is the major factor that can affect academic performance of school children. The main aim of this study was to determine the association between iodine deficiency disorder and academic performance among school age children. Both community & school based cross sectional survey was conducted from October 1-30, 2010. A total of 1254 students, aged 6-12 years, were selected from five primary schools using systematic random sampling method. Goiter examinations and urine iodine test was done to diagnose goiter. Spot urine samples were collected to determine median urinary iodine level and anthropometric measurements were done. In this study, 1,254 children were included; 674 (53.7%) were males. Average academic score of students for both sexes was 71.13%. Majority of students 349 (71.2%) who had goiter scored below average (p=0.01). High median urinary iodine level [AOR=0.38; 95% CI (0.190,0.489)]; high height-for-age z-score [AOR=5.023; 95% CI (3.317,7.607)]; and high weight-for-age z-score [AOR=3.214; 95% CI (2.091,4.941]) were significantly associated with good school performance. Iodine deficiency disorder is a significant health problem among schoolchildren in the study area. Strengthening salt iodization program is a preventive measure.

Visual acuity and academic performance of students in a Brazilian Amazon municipality

Objective: To evaluate visual acuity deficiency and its association with academic performance in schoolchildren. Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out with 1,050 students between 05 and 17 years of age from the public school system of Barcelos, Amazonas. The examination was performed at the school itself and with the aid of Snellen's Optometric Scale. Results: Of the 1,050 students submitted to the examination, 526 (50.1%) were female. The frequency for low acuity was 6.3% (66/1050). Among the students evaluated, there was no statistically significant difference at a 5% level for visual acuity and academic performance (p = 0.223). Conclusion: The study indicated a low frequency for visual deficit in the public school students of Barcelos - AM. In spite of this, it is advisable to carry out actions directed to eye health throughout the educational public network, aiming at prevention and early treatment of these students.

Height for age z score and cognitive function are associated with Academic performance among school children aged 8-11 years old.

BackgroundAcademic achievement of school age children can be affected by several factors such as nutritional status, demographics, and socioeconomic factors. Though evidence about the magnitude of malnutrition is well established in Ethiopia, there is a paucity of evidence about the association of nutritional status with academic performance among the nation’s school age children. Hence, this study aimed to determine how nutritional status and cognitive function are associated with academic performance of school children in Goba town, South East Ethiopia.MethodsAn institution based cross-sectional study was conducted among 131 school age students from primary schools in Goba town enrolled during the 2013/2014 academic year. The nutritional status of students was assessed by anthropometric measurement, while the cognitive assessment was measured by the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (KABC-II) and Ravens colored progressive matrices (Raven’s CPM) tests. The academic performance of the school children was measured by collecting the preceding semester academic result from the school record. Descriptive statistics, bivariate and multivariable linear regression were used in the statistical analysis.ResultsThis study found a statistically significant positive association between all cognitive test scores and average academic performance except for number recall (p = 0.12) and hand movements (p = 0.08). The correlation between all cognitive test scores and mathematics score was found positive and statistically significant (p < 0.05). In the multivariable linear regression model, better wealth index was significantly associated with higher mathematics score (ß = 0.63; 95 % CI: 0.12–0.74). Similarly a unit change in height for age z score resulted in 2.11 unit change in mathematics score (ß = 2.11; 95 % CI: 0.002–4.21). A single unit change of wealth index resulted 0.53 unit changes in average score of all academic subjects among school age children (ß = 0.53; 95 % CI: 0.11–0.95). A single unit change of age resulted 3.23 unit change in average score of all academic subjects among school age children (ß = 3.23; 95 % CI: 1.20–5.27).ConclusionNutritional status (height for age Z score) and wealth could be modifiable factors to improve academic performance of school age children. Moreover, interventions to improve nutrition for mothers and children may be an important contributor to academic success and national economic growth in Ethiopia. Further study with strong design and large sample size is needed.

The Effects of Breakfast and Breakfast Composition on Cognition in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review

Breakfast is thought to be beneficial for cognitive and academic performance in school children. However, breakfast is the most frequently skipped meal, especially among adolescents. The aim of the current article was to systematically review the evidence from intervention studies for the effects of breakfast on cognitive performance in children and adolescents. The effects of breakfast were evaluated by cognitive domain and breakfast manipulation. A total of 45 studies reported in 43 articles were included in the review. Most studies considered the acute effect of a single breakfast (n = 34). The acute studies looked at breakfast compared with no breakfast (n = 24) and/or comparisons of breakfast type (n = 15). The effects of chronic school breakfast program interventions were evaluated in 11 studies. The findings suggest that breakfast consumption relative to fasting has a short-term (same morning) positive domain-specific effect on cognition. Tasks requiring attention, executive function, and memory were facilitated more reliably by breakfast consumption relative to fasting, with effects more apparent in undernourished children. Firm conclusions cannot be made about the acute effects of breakfast composition and the effects of chronic breakfast interventions because there are too few studies and these largely report inconsistent findings. This review also highlights methodologic limitations of the existing research. These include a lack of research on adolescents, few naturalistic breakfast manipulations or testing environments, small samples, and insensitive cognitive tests.