PUPILS who eat breakfast are up to twice as likely to do well at school as those who do not, according to a study.

Researchers found a “significant link” between eating breakfast and performing above average on teacher assessment scores.

There was also a strong link between eating a healthy breakfast – such as cereal, bread, dairy or fruit – and doing well at school.

There was no such link for the one in five pupils who ate junk for breakfast, such as crisps or sweets.

The study on about 5,000 pupils from more than 100 primary schools was led by a team at Cardiff University.

It involved asking pupils aged nine to 11 what they ate for breakfast and during the rest of the day, and following their educational progress six to 18 months later.

The team found that a good breakfast was strongly linked to performing above average on teacher assessments, while there was also a link for those pupils who carried on eating fruit and veg at other times.

Dr Graham Moore, who worked on the study, said: “There’s a significant association between eating breakfast and doing well, but there is also a link between a healthy breakfast and doing well. The odds of achieving an above average teacher assessment score were up to twice as high for those pupils who ate breakfast.”