Breakfast is a vital meal that provides children with important nutrients and energy. This study examined the anthropometric, familial- and lifestyle-related characteristics of school children skipping breakfast. A total of 1149 children (boys: 45.5%), 6 to 12 years old (mean and SD: 9.3 ± 1.7 years), were randomly selected from elementary schools in Jeddah. Weight and height were measured. Breakfast eating frequency, socio-demographics, and lifestyle behaviors were assessed using a specifically designed self-report questionnaire reported by the parents. Nearly 80% of the children skipped daily breakfast at home with no significant age or gender differences. The most common reasons for skipping breakfast at home included not feeling hungry and waking up late for school. Fried egg sandwiches and breakfast cereals were most frequently consumed for breakfast. Strong parental support for breakfast as the main daily meal was significantly associated with daily breakfast intake. Logistic regression analyses, adjusted for age, gender, and socio-demographics, revealed that paternal education (aOR = 1.212, 95% CI = 1.020–1.440, p = 0.029), maternal education (aOR = 1.212, 95% CI = 1.003–1.464, p=0.046), insufficient sleep (aOR = 0.735, 95% CI = 0.567–0.951, p = 0.019), and BMI <25 kg/m² (aOR = 1.333, 95% CI = 1.015–1.752, p = 0.039) were significantly associated with breakfast intake. The findings have implications for children’s health and school performance. Concerted effort is required to promote breakfast consumption among Saudi children.

This study aimed to assess the nutritional knowledge and attitudes of physician interns graduated from King Abdul-Aziz University. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 100 physician interns who graduated in 2019, 2020, and 2021. An online self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data. A modified version of a validated questionnaire was used and provided to the participants in both Arabic and English versions, of which participants could choose one. This questionnaire consisted of three sections, including demographic data (five questions), attitude (47 questions), and knowledge (40 questions). A total of 100 (54 female and 46 male) participants completed the questionnaire. The nutrition and diabetes axis had the highest percentage of correct answers among the knowledge axes (55.6%), while the percentage of correct answers for the axis of nutrition and heart disease was the lowest (44%). There were no significant differences among most of the knowledge axes according to sex. However, there were significant differences between the averages of the answers of the male and female groups in the axis of nutrition and obesity only, where the male group had more correct answers than the female group. The average attitude of the study participants was almost good, with slight differences between males and females. A total of 51% of the participants were satisfied with the medical nutrition curriculum. The inadequacy of the nutritional curriculum among medical students was reflected in their satisfaction with their college programs and thus in their knowledge, attitudes, and confidence in providing nutritional counseling to patients. Intern physicians need to improve their clinical nutrition knowledge and skills to be able to provide patients with appropriate nutrition advice.

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a chronic gastrointestinal disease that causes abdominal pain associated with alteration of bowel habits. This study aimed to assess the efficacy of low Fermentable Oligosaccharides, Disaccharides, Monosaccharides, Polyols (FODMAP) diet intervention in adult patients with mild and severe symptoms of Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The study involved a low-FODMAP dietary intervention program that included anthropometric measurements (height and weight). A total of 45 randomly selected adult IBS patients were recruited from the family medicine department at King Abdulaziz Hospital and primary healthcare centers at King Fahd Hospital in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The severity of IBS symptoms was assessed using the validated IBS-SSS questionnaire developed by the Rome Foundation. Additionally, dietary data were gathered through a validated semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) Study participants included 68.9% females and 31.1% males, with the age group 18–30 years (66.7% of the total sample), followed by 31–45 years (33.3%). 62.2% were married and 37.8% were single. The mean BMI of the participants was 23.18 ± 2.348 kg/m², 77.8% were classified as normal weight, 17.8%, overweight, and 4.4% underweight. IBS symptoms before the FODMAP intervention program were; 82.2% moderate symptoms and 17.8% severe symptoms. After the program, 86% had moderate symptoms and 14% had mild symptoms. The low-FODMAP dietary intervention led to significant improvement in IBS symptoms and encouraged healthier eating habits among adult participants. However, due to the restrictive nature of the diet, it may have contributed to changes in weight and potential nutrient deficiencies. These findings emphasize the importance of implementing such interventions under professional guidance.

We investigated breakfast eating habits and lifestyle behaviors among Saudi school children attending public versus private schools. A random sample of 1149 children (girls: 54.4%) from public and private schools was selected from elementary schools using the multistage stratified cluster method. Measurements included body weight, height, body mass index (BMI), and self-reported questionnaires filled by the child’s parents. There was no significant (p = 0.44) difference in the prevalence of breakfast intake between children attending public (20.6%) versus private (19.4%) schools. However, there was a gender by school type interactions in breakfast intake frequency, as boys in private but not in public schools had significantly (p = 0.006) higher (26.3%) daily breakfast intake than girls (13.3%). Over 56% of the children ate and drank from the school canteen, and impacting factors on children’s choices were children’s desire, food taste, and parental influence. More parents of children in private (12.1%) than in public (6.9%) schools were satisfied with the food in the school canteen. Younger age (aOR = 0.889, 95% CI = 0.815–0.970, p = 0.008), higher father education (aOR = 1.380, 95% CI = 1.130–1.686, p = 0.002), family income (aOR = 1.227, 95% CI = 1.005–1.498, p = 0.044), and insufficient sleep duration (aOR = 0.740, 95% CI = 0.553–0.990, p = 0.042) were significantly associated with being in a private school. Furthermore, no significant differences, when adjusted for socio-demographic factors, appeared in breakfast intake or overweight/obesity relative to school type. Interventions to improve daily breakfast consumption and lifestyle behaviors of Saudi children are warranted.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to investigate how frequently male and female school and university students consumed energy drinks, their reasons for drinking them, and the extent of their knowledge about the beverages.METHODS: A self-administrated questionnaire was used to collect data from 4355 students (ages 12-26 years).RESULTS: Nearly 60% of the students consumed at least one can of an energy drink per week, and 63.3% drank two to four cans per week. Code Red was the most popular brand consumed (52.8%). Thirty-nine percent of the students consumed energy drinks in the afternoon, and 68.7% drank them because they enjoyed the flavor.CONCLUSION: More than half of the participants consumed energy drinks at least once per week. Students’ knowledge and practices regarding energy drinks need improvement so they will understand the drinks’ contents and their impacts on health. Food labels should mention the total amount of caffeine and provide clear information to consumers about appropriate limits and the risks of excessive consumption.

Hyperlipidemia is a malnutrition disease associated with different lifestyle factors mainly high fat/cholesterol foods consumption and less physical activity. Consumption of high fiber foods (prebiotic sources) additionally to gut microbiota (GM; probiotics species) could overcome hyperlipidemia and its associated risks. Prebiotics and probiotics are known by protective effects in different diseases like diabetes, inflammatory bowel diseases, and cardiovascular diseases. Mushroom and kefir milk (KM) are known for their high pre/probiotic nutritional values depending on many factors, for example, eating levels and/or conditions. Therefore, this study aimed to measure the potential health benefits of dried powdered mushrooms (DPM) supplemented with KM between hyperlipidemia rats in association with lipid profile, atherogenic index (AI), and GM profile. Rats were randomly divided into main negative control healthy group (G1; −ve), positive control hyperlipidemia (G2; +ve) and three hyperlipidemia groups (G3:G5) fed DPM at 2.5%, 5%, and 10% of rats' diet additionally to 5% KM (DPM + 5% KM) each, respectively. The collected blood samples used for glucose, lipid profile (cholesterol, triglycerides, high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol, and low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol), and AI in addition to fecal sample for GM and short‐chain fatty acids (SCFAs). Collected data illustrated that body weight, blood glucose, lipid profile, GM ( Bifidobacteria and Lactobacillus vs. Clostridium histolyticum ), AI, and SCFAs were improved between hyperlipidemia fed 5% both PDM + KM ( p ≤ 0.05) at the best levels. In conclusion, same DPM/KM levels have broad development as functional active foods that could lower hyperlipidemia incidence and promotes intestinal health; however, much more human studies are needed.