“Breakfast” the most important meal of the day. You’ve heard it a thousand times, but just why is it so important? It’s all about balancing blood sugar levels to provide the right amount of energy for optimum physical and mental performance.
Stay in control
Scenario 1 (Sensible breakfast)
Blood sugar is at its lowest first thing in the morning, and it may be anything up to 12 hours since a previous meal or snack. Blood sugar continues to fall unless food is consumed, it’s important to have a sensible breakfast within one hour of waking if possible.
A Low GI (Glyceamic Index) breakfast ensures that blood sugar rises gradually and is sustained for a couple of hours, and then it will start to drop. At this point it’s important to have a small mid morning healthy snack to make sure blood sugar levels don’t fall too low, providing sustained energy until lunch.
Following a morning of sensible eating you will be in control, and able to choose the right lunch options and portion sizes. Your energy and concentration levels will be at optimum, and your performance and judgement will not be impaired because your body or mind are running on substandard fuel.
Having started the day following these patterns, you’re far more likely to stick to them throughout the day, and continue to eat sensibly and in proportion. This pattern of eating is more likely to ensure that you are not eating late at night, or snacking or over eating at the end of the day - a classic symptom of non-breakfasters.
Scenario 2 (No breakfast)
Blood sugar continues to fall throughout the early morning and by mid morning to lunch has reached critically low proportions. You’re starting to become hypoglycaemic and the type of food preferred is calorie dense, fatty or sugary – and lots of it.
Out of the window goes moderation and control, along with it any rationale for healthy eating or portion control. You can’t wait to get your hands on that food, and you gorge yourself as you haven’t eaten for up to 18 hours and are “starving”!
Planning meal times and aiming for five eating points throughout the day will provide the best approach for avoiding over eating or binge eating in the evenings.
Some good ideas for breakfast:
- None wheat (gluten) cereals with skimmed or semi skimmed milk (or Soya milk) and added fruit or banana
- Cornbread toast with low fat cheese spread, cottage cheese or marmite
- No added salt or sugar gluten free museli
- Fresh fruit salad with low fat yoghurt
- Baked beans on cornbread toast
- Boiled egg and cornbread toast
- Spaghetti on toast
- Fruit juices diluted 50/50 with water
- A banana