Over the years governments and some food companies have been promoting the general population to eat breakfast. I’m sure you have heard many different messages going back to your childhood. Like you shouldn’t skip breakfast, eat breakfast like a king, and that it’s the most important meal of the day. Now is there any truth to any of the claims?
Weight loss
So can having breakfast help you to lose weight? They did a randomised trial to compare breakfast eaters to people who skip it. Where there were three groups, a group who were told to eat “healthy”, a group who ate before 10 am and the third group who ate after 11 am. This was over 16 weeks. What they found was that there is no difference between people who have breakfast and those who don’t.
What about metabolism?
A claim that has been made for many years. That eating breakfast fires up your metabolism. There was a 6-week study, where they had two groups. One group ate over 700 calories before 11 in the morning. A group who didn’t eat anything before 12 pm. In this study, people who had breakfast were more active but they also ended up eating more calories. What they found out was that those who had breakfast that it didn’t “boost your metabolism” compared to those who skipped this meal.
Making people eat breakfast
So a study was carried out to see what would happen if you take people who don’t normally eat breakfast and they start eating it. In this one, there were two groups there was group one had 15% of their calories before 8.30 in the morning. Group two didn’t eat anything before 11.30 in the morning. They decided to weigh everyone before and after the 4 weeks. What is interesting is, that the people who had breakfast gained 0.7 kg at the end and they consumed more calories which were about 266 more. So what happened to people who didn’t eat breakfast is they didn’t put on any weight.
Does it make you healthier?
There is a link between people with a lower bodyweight and eating breakfast. if you take a look at some research that it appears people who eat breakfast are “healthier” than those who don’t eat it. Why would this be the case? Well for decades people have been told that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. So guess what? People who want to be healthy tend to have more health-seeking behaviors. Which could be having a “healthy”, well-balanced diet, and more general activity in their lifestyle. Perhaps they don’t smoke, eat more fruit and vegetables and have a moderate intake of alcohol. Compare them to non breakfast eaters, who may not do any of those things because they might not be that bothered about their health.
So should you eat breakfast?
So what can we take from this? It depends on if you like to eat breakfast every morning. If you feel that you can’t start your day without eating in the morning. Then you can have breakfast. If you’re someone who doesn’t like having a meal first thing in the morning or you’re not that bothered by it. Then you don’t need to eat as soon as you get up from bed. As long as you’re getting plenty of nutrients from your diet throughout the day regardless if you choose to eat something in the morning.
However, there are a few things to consider in either situation. Is that if you’re eating more total calories from consuming more food. If you skip breakfast and you could grab snacks on the way to work due to getting hungry. Snacking while working at your desk in the office. Because if you’re hungry you’re less likely to make better choices.
Whether you choose to have breakfast or not. It comes down to what will help you stick to your diet and improve your food choices. Some people are simply not hungry in the morning. Compared to some people who feel it sets them up for the day. So if you have been told over the years you must eat breakfast because it makes you healthier, and sets you up for the day. It helps to kick-start your metabolism. Know that the evidence doesn’t support it when it comes to research.
