A Dietary Pattern High in Sugar, Sodium and Saturated Fat Was Negatively Associated With Academic Performance in Malay Adolescents.

Introduction: Dietary patterns (DP) and its relationship with academic performance especially among schoolchildren have received significant attention in nutritional epidemiology studies. The objective of this cross-sectional study was to determine the determinants of academic success among Malay teenagers in Terengganu, Malaysia. Methods: Habitual dietary intakes were obtained using a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire, anthropometry data were measured by trained researchers and information on academic performance were gathered from the school registrar’s office. The method of reduced rank regression was employed in order to determine the dietary patterns (DPs) and multivariable linear regression models were employed to examine the relationships between DP and academic performance. Results: Of the 375 study participants, half of the sample were female (50.1%), with 61.9% having a normal BMI. The main DP identified in this study was “high sugar, high sodium and high saturated fatty acid (SFA)”. The models showed that there were significant inverse associations between the DP with Science marks (β=-1.87; 95%CI:-0.39,-3.36; p=0.013) and the combination of Mathematics and Science marks (β=-3.49; 95%CI:-0.45,6.52; p=0.024). Findings showed that a ‘high sugar, sodium and SFA’ DP could negatively impact the academic performance of adolescents, particularly in STEM-related subjects. Conclusion: These could serve as a basis for developing nutritional education among adolescents to enhance academic performance for a better future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]