SAT OwlQuestion bank / Cross-Text Connections
Text 1: Many nutrition researchers have recommended that adults eat breakfast every morning, citing studies in which breakfast eaters weighed less on average than people who skipped the meal. These researchers argue that breakfast helps regulate appetite throughout the day.
Text 2: Studies linking breakfast to lower body weight have mostly been observational. They compared people who already chose to eat breakfast with people who did not. In controlled trials, where participants were randomly assigned to eat or skip breakfast, researchers have found little difference in weight change between the groups. Breakfast eaters may simply differ from skippers in other habits, such as exercise.
Based on the texts, how would the author of Text 2 most likely respond to the recommendation discussed in Text 1?
By arguing that the recommendation relies on evidence that may not show that breakfast itself causes lower weight
By agreeing that the recommendation is strongly supported by controlled trials
By claiming that skipping breakfast causes people to gain weight
By suggesting that the researchers in Text 1 measured body weight inaccurately
Show answer and explanation
Answer: A
Text 2 notes that the studies behind the recommendation were observational and that randomized trials found little effect. It suggests other habits may explain the weight difference. The author would therefore say the evidence does not show that breakfast causes lower weight, as in choice A.
Choice B is the opposite of Text 2's point, since the controlled trials found little difference between breakfast eaters and skippers.
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