Breaking the fast might not be for everyone, but let’s consider the pros of starting the day with a good meal.
Many of us grow up believing that skipping breakfast is a dietary travesty. Quite rightly so it turns out. Because, according to scientists at the University of Alicante’s Department of Health Psychology, regular breakfast consumption is associated with a range of benefits, including more adequate intakes of macro- and micronutrients, lower body mass index (BMI), higher cognitive performance and better levels of wellbeing and quality of life.
The most researched aspect of breakfast (and breakfast-skipping) has been its links to obesity. In one US study, researchers indicated that breakfast helps to increase satiety, reduce daily calorie intake, improve diet quality and boost insulin sensitivity at subsequent meals.
Probably the most tempting benefit is that breakfast jumpstarts your metabolism and thus helps you burn more calories throughout the day. In effect you’re telling your body that there are loads of calories waiting in the wings. But when you skip breakfast, your body gets the message to conserve rather than burn incoming calories.
Despite the potential physical and mental benefits of eating breakfast, surveys worldwide have shown that breakfast skipping is highly prevalent – especially from childhood through adolescence.
In conclusion, heed the words of Adelle Davis, ‘Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a pauper.’
Ref: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6121474/
