Is It Necessary To Have Breakfast?
It has often been said that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. However, to what extent is it necessary? What do the studies say? We will explain it to you later.
The claim that having breakfast is necessary for a healthy diet has long raised serious doubts. The idea that the first meal of the day is important and necessary was initially strongly pushed by the food industry.
Unsurprisingly, it is the only meal of the day that contains foods specially indicated for him. Let’s see what is new on this topic.
Is breakfast necessary?
Today we can say that there is no meal of the day that is essential. The truth is, many studies related to the benefits of breakfast are observational.
What does it mean ? It has been observed that people who eat breakfast tend to have better health, but it has not been possible to show that the cause is breakfast.
The important thing in terms of food is what you actually ate at the end of the day. That the amount is adequate for your energy needs and that in addition it is composed of healthy foods. As almost always, when it comes to food, there is no one-size-fits-all formula.
The advice to eat 5 meals a day may be valid for some people, but for others it may be sufficient to concentrate the entire intake on two larger meals.
Therefore, we must abandon the idea of an ideal diet, to adapt healthy and individualized eating habits for each person.
What happens if you skip breakfast?
Some people get up in the morning and are not hungry or want to eat breakfast. Others can extend their breakfast by taking a coffee or an infusion in the morning.
This does not mean that they will have poorer physical performance or more fatigue in the morning. Or that they’ll throw themselves on the fridge at lunchtime. Everyone must know their body and their needs, and adapt their meals to them.
On the contrary, benefits have been seen in the habit of skipping breakfast. This practice has been studied in some people who follow intermittent fasting protocols. Sometimes 8am food windows mean skipping breakfast or postponing it for a few hours.
Although it is advisable to concentrate meals during the day, no harm has been observed in those who ate their meals late at night. It is just as good to have breakfast and lunch as it is to have an early lunch and dinner.
Breakfast in slimming diets
If you are on a diet to lose weight, is breakfast necessary? One of the most popular and common tips for dieticians is breakfast.
Although little by little other visions are needed, it has always been believed that eating often helps not to arrive so hungry at the next meal AND promotes constant energy expenditure.
These beliefs are gradually fading. Some studies have found that eating little and often does not accelerate weight loss. On the contrary, skipping breakfast could be beneficial as it reduces your total calorie intake.
There is even data that shows that starting to eat breakfast can increase the total number of calories consumed in people who do not have this habit.
Finally, we have to be careful when we recommend eating breakfast for weight loss, as it could have the opposite effect. We must always take into account individual characteristics and needs.
When is it advisable to have breakfast?
When you don’t eat enough
Skipping breakfast doesn’t have to mean eating less or malnutrition. As we said, it is very important that the food intake is balanced throughout the day.
Therefore, breakfast will be necessary if throughout the day you are not able to eat all that your body needs to function well.
If you have digestive problems
It is not recommended to eat very large meals when you have problems such as gastritis, slow digestion, hiatus hernia, or if you do not have a gallbladder. In these cases, having a meal in the morning, and even a small snack in the middle of the morning, can be very positive.
When you end up eating anything
If you get up in the morning with little time and little appetite, but in the middle of the morning you go straight to the machine for a snack, for example. You should start eating breakfast at home, or plan a mid-morning break to eat healthy foods.
If you ate overnight
If you wake up without hunger in the morning because during the night you ate more than you needed or ate something before going to bed, it will be better to correct the dinners in terms of the quality and quantity of food. This way you will gradually get hungrier in the morning.
If you want to eat breakfast, make it healthy
The evidence seems clear: breakfast is nothing special. If you wake up feeling hungry in the morning, or if you think breakfast can improve your diet, you can eat a healthy breakfast.
Improving the breakfast in terms of quality and variety of food is very important. We must take advantage of all the advances that have been made in this area to work on healthy eating habits.
Breakfast is a good time to introduce certain foods and nutrients that are important for our health:
- Dried fruits. They are a good source of protein and minerals, especially for vegans. In addition, there is no need to worry about their fats, as they have a healthy lipid profile.
- Oatmeal, whole grain flakes or whole wheat bread. They are a good source of fiber, if it is difficult for you to access fruits and vegetables.
- Eggs, yogurt, cheese or tofu. They should be the source of protein in the morning.
- Fruits and vegetables, to accompany your mueslis or your toast.
How necessary is breakfast? Perhaps we have overstated the importance of that first meal of the day! However, it is clear that it has to be healthy if you want to take care of your health. Keep that in mind!
