Gender differences in the eating behaviour of Italian schoolchildren

We have investigated the food habits of Italian schoolchildren in order to highlight gender differences. We focused on breakfast, snacks times as well as the use of vending machines. Moreover, we have evaluated whether the skipping of the considered "meals" is correlated to body mass index. A sample of 721 students completed a questionnaire, 97% of them were aged between 11-14. For the tree "meals", foods with better nutritional quality were chosen more by females. Children classified as being overweight and obese more frequently skipped breakfast. The reasons for using vending machines mainly reflect a pragmatic behaviour with the prevailing options including "convenient" as well as "to have a break", 39.3% of females chosen the option "no reason" compared to 22.9% of males. In our sample females have a better eating behaviour based on food choice but a greater lack of awareness about using vending machine. Moreover, females overweight and obese use vending machine more frequently.