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Table 2 Summary of Breakfast Findings and Concerns for Child Obesity

From: Immigrant families' perceptions on walking to school and school breakfast: a focus group study

Domain

Themes and sub-themes

Current breakfast practices

• Participants' children typically eat a range of breakfast foods, including both American and culturally traditional foods

• Most families did not eat breakfast together during weekdays

• Some participants' children ate breakfast at school on occasion

Benefits of eating breakfast

Good for school performance

• Helps children wake up

• Helps children concentrate in school; good as "brain fuel"

Culturally-relevant

• Part of the culture to eat breakfast (Spanish, Vietnamese)

Barriers to eating breakfast in general

Lack of time

• Families too busy in the morning and children wake up late

Children not hungry

• Ate dinner late

• Not active in the morning

Children unaware of the importance of breakfast

• Parents not teaching/reminding children

Barriers to eating school breakfast

Food content

• Not enough hot dishes, especially culturally-appropriate hot foods

• Pork products served (not eaten by Somali families)

• Lack of variety

Food quality

• Food too processed and some food expired

• Need more fruits and vegetables

Lack of adequate time to eat

• Buses arrive late and children will not get breakfast at all

Concern not adequately supervised

• Children play instead of going to cafeteria

• No assurance children will be monitored to eat food served

Approaches to improve school breakfast program

Food content/quality

• Offer more culturally-specific foods, especially hot main dishes

• Survey parents about what they want

• Offer taste tests to children

Supervision

• Reminders to children to eat breakfast from school staff/bus drivers

Adequate time to eat

• Ensure bus arrival time appropriate & children get breakfast if late

Concerns for childhood overweight

Lifestyle in the U.S. worse for physical activity

• More sedentary activities–TV, video games

• Parents too busy to supervise children in physical activities

• Children living in U.S. less independent, and less fit (Vietnamese)

Concern expressed more about other children, not their own