Want to be thin? Don't skip breakfast

SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 1 (UPI) -- If you usually skip breakfast or start the day with large helpings of bacon and eggs, you risk being fatter than those who eat a bowl of hot cereal for breakfast.

That's the conclusion of a new study by University of California-Berkeley researchers. The study, sponsored by the cereal maker Kellogg, was published in Friday's issue of the Journal of the American College of Nutrition.

Lead researcher Gladys Block told the San Francisco Chronicle: "What seems clear is skipping breakfast is not good for you. It doesn't help you lose weight or maintain a low body weight. It's just the opposite."

The researchers compared what 16,452 Americans ate for breakfast with their body mass index -- a formula used to measure ideal weight based on height. They also factored in physical activity and smoking, which can also affect body weight.

The study is the first demographically controlled research that shows how different breakfast foods affect one's weight.