Why is breakfast important?

I'm confident that at some point in your life you will have been told that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and whoever told you this piece of information was not wrong. But why is breakfast important, and why do so many people find themselves skipping it?

In this post I aim to answer both of these questions for you, and give you a better understanding as to why you should be making sure that breakfast is a regular occurrence, as opposed to an inconvenience.

Breakfast is the first meal of the day before we leave the house and head off to work or school. It's purpose is to fuel your body for what lies ahead between then and your next meal. Breakfast is going to make you perform better both physically and mentally, which is why it is so very important that you eat it.

Don't ever be fooled into thinking you are doing yourself a favor by missing breakfast in order to keep your calorie intake for the day down, this is a bad idea and this post will explain exactly why.

If you don't get that breakfast fuel then what is going to happen?

So what happens if you don't eat breakfast? The effects of not eating breakfast are primarily that from the word go you will be hungry, and when you leave the house at 7-30am and lunch is not until 1pm, that is a long time to stave off the temptation to eat something in between. There is a high chance that you are going to end up eating between meals, upping your calorie intake.

While you are asleep during the night, your glucose levels will drop, glucose being the fuel that your cells need to produce energy. Unless these are raised by you starting the day with a decent breakfast you are going to have a lack of energy, and also not be as mentally alert as you would be, had you had a healthy meal to start the day. Tiredness and lack of concentration are also common issues.

There is also another factor that should concern anybody who thinks that skipping breakfast is going to help them lose weight. This is that the longer you leave eating after you wake up, the higher the chances of your body's insulin levels increasing, which in turn leads to your body storing more fat.

Many people rely on high energy drinks, or caffeine loaded drinks such as red-bull in order to give them a lift, but have you ever seen how many calories are in these?

Just to make a point, there are 202 calories in a small 16 fl oz can of red-bull. A large 32 fl oz can of red-bull has 403 calories in it. Compare these to our quick low calorie breakfast example below to see why these are not the answer.

People also rely on coffee to get them through the morning, as this is another caffeine loaded drink. To find out more about calories in coffee please click here.

Why do people skip breakfast?

As breakfast is arguably the meal that is skipped the most, let's talk about the reasons people might have for not eating it.


1. Trying to cut out calories or lose weight - People think that if they skip a meal, or two a day, then they are going to lose weight because they are cutting out the calories that each missed meal would contain. If they were to have a set menu each day and do exactly that then yes this would be possible. However, it is rarely that simple. By missing a meal, you body is going to feel more hungry and this may mean that you at some point give into temptation and snack between meal times, or you end up eating more in the meal that you do have, in order to satisfy your hunger. Either way, you could well end up consuming more calories than if you had just eaten your regular meals. A bigger lunch, or dinner could exceed the calories you missed at breakfast in other words. You may also be so hungry when it does come to lunch, or dinner later on, that you end up eating something less healthy because it is quicker and easier to make, with hunger eating away at you.

2. No time to eat breakfast - Not everybody is a fan of getting up in the morning, and this can often mean that people will happily sacrifice the time spent preparing and eating their breakfast, in order to get a little bit more of a lay in. If you don't have time then get up a bit earlier, we are talking like half an hour maximum here, there is no excuse not to be able to make that time for something so important. If you genuinely don't have time then there is always the option of preparing something like a fruit salad the night before so you just get up and eat it, or you can take it with you and eat in en-route to work or school.


3. Lack of hunger - First thing in the morning can be a time when people are not hungry, but this is generally immediately after waking up. Take a shower or do a bit of light exercise after waking up and you will find that your body responds with feeling hungry. If you are still not hungry at least try and eat something, because you can guarantee that you will end up famished before lunch time.

Now that you know why breakfast is important you are going to make sure you do not fit into the above three categories right?


What should you have for breakfast?

There a variety of foods that you should eat for breakfast, but the most important things that these foods should contain are protein and fiber. Fiber is found mainly in natural foods such as fruits, whole-grains and vegetables, whereby protein can be got from dairy products, meat, and nuts.

Something that people often forget is that you don't need to take ages to prepare breakfast, it is not like standing in the kitchen for an hour making a big evening meal. There are plenty of ways to have a very quick breakfast so that it need not delay you in the morning.

Here is an example of low calorie foods to eat for breakfast:

* A medium sized banana - 105 calories in a medium banana
* A bowl of oatmeal - 150 calories found in an 8.3 oz serving of oatmeal
* A glass of orange juice - 1 regular cup of orange juice has 112 calories in
* A yogurt -In a 4.4 oz non-fat fruit yogurt there is 118 calories

Total breakfast calories - 485 calories

If you add a dash of low-fat milk to the oatmeal and a teaspoon of sugar you will add approximately 20-25 calories.

Earlier in this post I mentioned that one large can of red-bull that people often drink in the mornings to give themselves a lift, contained 403 calories. Now that may provide a lift in the sense that it boosts their alertness and concentration, all be it temporarily, however it does not satisfy hunger. So anything eaten in addition to that is going to have to be pretty meager and low in calories in order to be as effective as actually having breakfast in the first place.

The above is just an example of what you can have for breakfast, below is a list of other healthy foods that you can eat in the morning:

* Cereals
* Fruit
* Milk
* Low-fat cheese
* Wholemeal toast
* Wholemeal bagels
* Eggs
* Water
* Nuts
* Peanut butter
* Fruit juices

To find out how many calories are in fruits that can be eaten on their own, or with cereal at breakfast time, please check out on my page dedicated to fruit calories.

What shouldn't you have for breakfast?

When it comes to the foods that you make up your breakfast with, there are always going to be plenty of right options, as well as plenty of wrong ones. Of course eating something is better than not eating anything at all, but where possible try to avoid the following foods:

* Sugary foods
* High calorie foods - To find out more about high calorie foods click here.
* Foods containing saturated fats
* Anything high in sodium

Now you know why breakfast is important

So in summary, although there are plenty of reasons why people skip breakfast, it is a bad and unhealthy idea that is only going to have a negative effect on how you feel during the day ahead. There is no excuse not to make sure you have something for breakfast, even if you just grab a piece of fruit as you rush out of the door.

My advice to you though is get organized, either prepare something simple the night before or go to bed that little bit earlier so that your alarm going off half an hour before you are used to does not hurt so much!