(photo by Clara Natoli, courtesy of morguefile.com)

If you're trying to lose weight by skipping breakfast you may be working against yourself. By reviewing thousands of research reports, University of California scientists were able to pin down the four factors that are most likely to cause people to become overweight and suffer obesity in America:

1. Consumption of Dietary Fat

2. Sweetened Beverages

3. Restaurant Foods

4. A Pattern of Breakfast-skipping

The review found that intake of protein, simple sugars and fruit juice, as well as food variety, portion size, snacking and frequency of eating, were not consistently related to obesity. In addition to avoiding the factors that cause people to be overweight, the study found that a good preventative diet would include lots of fiber, fruits and vegetables, and adequate calcium and dairy products.

To read an article authored by the scientists that conducted the review that was published in California Agriculture go to: Preventing Obesity: What Should We Eat?