Learn to Love Breakfast

Learn to Love Breakfast

A 2002 study by the National Weight Control Registry found that women who skipped breakfast made up for it by eating more throughout the day. So even though you think you’re saving calories by skipping breakfast, you’re actually eating more throughout the day. Why does breakfast make such a difference? Scientists have proven that eating at regular intervals helps your brain send signals to your body, telling it not to store the calories as fat—that you aren’t starving. When you skip meals however, your body can switch into "starvation mode," hanging onto every calorie because it doesn’t know when, or if, the next meal is coming. By the time you get up in the morning, 10 to 12 hours have passed since your last meal and your body is in fasting mode. Eating soon after rising will break this fast (see where the word "breakfast" comes from?) and fire up your metabolism for the day. If you aren’t hungry as soon as you get up, have something nutritious to eat anyway, even if it's small.

Here are a few reasons why breakfast is so important:

** Breakfast boosts memory. Eating breakfast improves memory and learning ability. Breakfast raises your blood sugar, which is needed to make the memory-boosting neurotransmitter acetylcholine.

** Breakfast boosts mood and performance. A Harvard study showed that children who skipped breakfast were twice as likely to be depressed, four times more prone to anxiety, and 30 percent more likely to be hyperactive. When children who "rarely" ate breakfast began eating breakfast "their levels of depression, anxiety and hyperactivity all decreased. While this study looked at children, it is natural to assume that adults would see similar results related to work performance and mood.

** Breakfast boosts nutrition. Breakfast eaters consume more nutrients each day than breakfast skippers. Eating an a.m. meal increases your intake of important nutrients like calcium, iron, zinc, B vitamins and fiber.

** Breakfast boosts heart health. Blood tends to become "sticky" overnight, making it more prone to clots.

Here are some quick, yet nutritious, breakfast ideas:

A scrambled egg with whole-wheat toast and half a cup of fresh blueberries

A whole-wheat toaster waffle topped with fresh strawberries

A low-fat, whole-wheat multigrain muffin with applesauce and an ounce of cheese

An English muffin with low-fat cheese melted on top, and a glass of orange juice

One half of a cinnamon-raisin bagel with peanut butter and banana slices

One half a cup of whole-grain cereal with banana slices and skim milk

A hard-boiled egg and whole-wheat toast

Greek yogurt with fresh berries and almond or soy milk

Slow-cooked oatmeal topped with milk, cinnamon and raisins