Selected eating behaviours and excess body weight: a systematic review
Abstract
Summary: The relationship between obesity and the intake of macronutrients and specific foods is uncertain. Thus, there is growing interest in some eating behaviours because they may reflect the joint effect of several foods and nutrients and, thus, increase the likelihood of finding a link to obesity. This study examined the association between selected eating behaviours and excess weight in the general population throughout a systematic review of publications written in English, Spanish or Portuguese identified in a PubMed search up to 31 December 2010. We included 153 articles, 73 of which have been published since 2008. Only 30 studies had a prospective design; of these, 15 adjusted for sociodemographic variables, physical activity and energy or food intake. Moreover, definitions of eating behaviours varied substantially across studies. We found only small or inconsistent evidence of a relationship between excess weight and skipping breakfast, daily eating frequency, snacking, irregular meals, eating away from home, consumption of fast food, takeaway food intake, consumption of large food portions, eating until full and eating quickly. In conclusion, this review highlights the difficulty in measuring human behaviour, and suggests that a more systematic approach is needed for capturing the effects of eating behaviours on body weight.
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
Most research in this area has focused on how different meal patterns make an impact on energy balance and weight status.
“Most of the research in this area, however, has focused on how different meal patterns (also referred to as eating patterns) make an impact on energy balance and weight status( 5 , 6 ).”
From Understanding meal patterns: definitions, methodology and impact on nutrient intake and diet quality (2015) · cites this paper as [5]
An oft-cited drawback to interpreting evidence from these studies has been the different approaches employed to operationally define meals and/or snacks.
“An oft-cited drawback to interpreting the evidence from these studies has been the different approaches employed to operationally define meals and/or snacks( 5 , 7 ).”
From Understanding meal patterns: definitions, methodology and impact on nutrient intake and diet quality (2015) · cites this paper as [5]
Due to the current limited methods available to collect meal pattern data, most research to date has examined meal patterning, with relatively little focus on meal format and context.
“Due to the current limited methods available to collect meal pattern data, most research to date has examined meal patterning( 5 , 61 ), with relatively little focus on meal format( 29 ) and context( 32 ).”
From Understanding meal patterns: definitions, methodology and impact on nutrient intake and diet quality (2015) · cites this paper as [5]
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Cites
Liberati, A., Altman, D. G., Tetzlaff, J., Mulrow, C., Gøtzsche, P. C., Ioannidis, J. P. A., Clarke, M., Devereaux, P. J., Kleijnen, J., & Moher, D. (2009) · Journal of Clinical Epidemiology · doi:10.1016/j.jclinepi.2009.06.006 · Cited by 10,578 · see citing works
Pereira, M. A., Kartashov, A. I., Ebbeling, C. B., Van Horn, L., Slattery, M. L., Jacobs, D. R., & Ludwig, D. S. (2005) · The Lancet · doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(04)17663-0 · Cited by 1,348 · see citing works
Association between Eating Patterns and Obesity in a Free-living US Adult Population
Ma, Y. (2003) · American Journal of Epidemiology · doi:10.1093/aje/kwg117 · Cited by 725 · see citing works
Szajewska, H., & Ruszczyński, M. (2010) · Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition · doi:10.1080/10408390903467514 · Cited by 403 · see citing works
Longitudinal study of skipping breakfast and weight change in adolescents
Berkey, C. S., Rockett, H. R. H., Gillman, M. W., Field, A. E., & Colditz, G. A. (2003) · International Journal of Obesity · doi:10.1038/sj.ijo.0802402 · Cited by 362 · see citing works
Bertéus Forslund, H., Torgerson, J. S., Sjöström, L., & Lindroos, A. K. (2005) · International Journal of Obesity · doi:10.1038/sj.ijo.0802950 · Cited by 332 · see citing works
Eating patterns and dietary composition in relation to BMI in younger and older adults
Howarth, N. C., Huang, T. T.-K., Roberts, S. B., Lin, B.-H., & McCrory, M. A. (2007) · International Journal of Obesity · doi:10.1038/sj.ijo.0803456 · Cited by 249 · see citing works
Bertéus Forslund, H., Lindroos, A., Sjöström, L., & Lissner, L. (2002) · European Journal of Clinical Nutrition · doi:10.1038/sj.ejcn.1601387 · Cited by 210 · see citing works
Meal Frequency and Childhood Obesity
Toschke, A. M., Küchenhoff, H., Koletzko, B., & Von Kries, R. (2005) · Obesity Research · doi:10.1038/oby.2005.238 · Cited by 198 · see citing works
The Role of Snacking in Energy Balance: a Biobehavioral Approach,
Chapelot, D. (2011) · The Journal of Nutrition · doi:10.3945/jn.109.114330 · Cited by 126 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics—2017 Update: A Report From the American Heart Association
Benjamin, E. J., Blaha, M. J., Chiuve, S. E., Cushman, M., Das, S. R., Deo, R., de Ferranti, S. D., Floyd, J., Fornage, M., Gillespie, C., et al. (2017) · Circulation · doi:10.1161/cir.0000000000000485 · Cited by 12,591 · see citing works
Heart disease and stroke statistics-2018 update: a report from the american heart association
Benjamin, E. J., Virani, S. S., Callaway, C. W., Chamberlain, A. M., Chang, A. R., Cheng, S., Chiuve, S. E., Cushman, M., Delling, F. N., Deo, R., et al. (2018) · Circulation · doi:10.1161/cir.0000000000000558 · Cited by 7,146 · see citing works
Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics—2015 Update: A Report From the American Heart Association
Mozaffarian, D., Benjamin, E. J., Go, A. S., Arnett, D. K., Blaha, M. J., Cushman, M., de Ferranti, S., Després, J.-P., Fullerton, H. J., Howard, V. J., et al. (2015) · Circulation · doi:10.1161/cir.0000000000000152 · Cited by 5,797 · see citing works
Understanding meal patterns: definitions, methodology and impact on nutrient intake and diet quality
Leech, R. M., Worsley, A., Timperio, A., & McNaughton, S. A. (2015) · Nutrition Research Reviews · doi:10.1017/s0954422414000262 · Cited by 379 · see citing works
Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of the Impact of Restaurant Menu Calorie Labeling
Long, M. W., Tobias, D. K., Cradock, A. L., Batchelder, H., & Gortmaker, S. L. (2015) · American Journal of Public Health · doi:10.2105/ajph.2015.302570 · Cited by 257 · see citing works
Weighing the Evidence of Common Beliefs in Obesity Research
Casazza, K., Brown, A., Astrup, A., Bertz, F., Baum, C., Brown, M. B., Dawson, J., Durant, N., Dutton, G., Fields, D. A., et al. (2015) · Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition · doi:10.1080/10408398.2014.922044 · Cited by 169 · see citing works
Brown, A. W., Bohan Brown, M. M., & Allison, D. B. (2013) · The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition · doi:10.3945/ajcn.113.064410 · Cited by 155 · see citing works
Characterizing eating patterns: a comparison of eating occasion definitions
Leech, R. M., Worsley, A., Timperio, A., & McNaughton, S. A. (2015) · The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition · doi:10.3945/ajcn.115.114660 · Cited by 133 · see citing works
Pot, G. K., Hardy, R., & Stephen, A. M. (2014) · International Journal of Obesity · doi:10.1038/ijo.2014.51 · Cited by 102 · see citing works
Meal timing and its role in obesity and associated diseases
Peters, B., Vahlhaus, J., & Pivovarova-Ramich, O. (2024) · Frontiers in Endocrinology · doi:10.3389/fendo.2024.1359772 · Cited by 72 · see citing works
“Further human studies have also focused on breakfast timing and meal regularity (63).”
BackgroundWeight discrimination and unhealthy eating-related behaviors
Sutin, A., Robinson, E., Daly, M., & Terracciano, A. (2016) · Appetite · doi:10.1016/j.appet.2016.02.016 · Cited by 59 · see citing works
The Influence of Portion Size and Timing of Meals on Weight Balance and Obesity
Berg, C., & Forslund, H. B. (2015) · Current Obesity Reports · doi:10.1007/s13679-015-0138-y · Cited by 46 · see citing works
Mesas, A. E., Guallar-Castillón, P., León-Muñoz, L. M., Graciani, A., López-Garíca, E., Gutiérrez-Fisac, J. L., Banegas, J. R., & RodrÍguez-Artalejo, F. (2012) · The Journal of Nutrition · doi:10.3945/jn.112.158154 · Cited by 44 · see citing works
Self-citationDuus, K. S., Bonnesen, C. T., Rosing, J. A., Madsen, K. R., Pedersen, T. P., Toftager, M., Thygesen, L. C., & Krølner, R. F. (2022) · International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity · doi:10.1186/s12966-021-01228-2 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
- Authors
- Mesas, A. E., Muñoz‐Pareja, M., López‐García, E., & Rodríguez‐Artalejo, F.
- Affiliations
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Epidemiología y Salud Pública (ES)
- Corresponding author
- Mesas, A. E.
- Venue
- Obesity Reviews
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2011-09-28
- Volume
- 13
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 106-135
- ISSN
- 1467-7881 (ISSN-L)
- 1467-789X
- OpenAlex
- W1518729828
- Cited by
- 219
- References
- 10
- Citations by year
- 2026: 3 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 17 · 2023: 4 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 21 · 2020: 18 · 2019: 11 · 2018: 17 · 2017: 16 · 2016: 21 · 2015: 22 · 2014: 20 · 2013: 17 · 2012: 17
- FWCI
- 2.07
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Obesity Reviews (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- Plan Nacional sobre Drogas
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Nursing › Nutrition and Dietetics › Nutrition, Health and Food Behavior
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Obesity, Physical Activity, Diet
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Eating Disorders and Behaviors
- Keywords
- eating behaviour, overweight, obesity, breakfast skipping, meal frequency, snacking, eating out, fast food consumption, takeaway food, portion size, eating speed, macronutrient intake, dietary intake
- MeSH terms
- Body Weight, Energy Intake, Dietary Carbohydrates, Dietary Fats, Feeding Behavior, Humans, Obesity, Public Health, Exercise
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
