Breakfast ISN’T the most important meal of the day, according to experts

Famously described as the most important meal of the day, breakfast is hailed as having a host of health benefits.

Eating a balanced meal first thing in the morning, such as porridge, eggs or yogurt with muesli, prevents you from eating unnecessarily, research suggests.

Meanwhile, dozens of studies have shown that skipping a meal early has been linked to an increased risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes, and high blood pressure.

However, nutritionists have now broken the mantra that breakfast provides the ‘best possible start’ to the day. In fact, giving it up reduces sugar intake, lowers hunger levels and alleviates tiredness, they say.

WHAT SHOULD A BALANCED DIET LOOK LIKE?

Meals should be based on potatoes, bread, rice, pasta or other starchy carbohydrates, ideally whole grain, according to the NHS.

• Eat at least five servings of a variety of fruits and vegetables every day. All fresh, frozen, dried and canned fruits and vegetables count

• Base meals on potatoes, bread, rice, pasta or other starchy carbohydrates, ideally whole grains

• Thirty grams of fiber a day. This is the same as eating all of the following: five servings of fruits and vegetables, two whole grain crackers, two thick slices of whole wheat bread, and one large baked potato with skin on.

• Have some dairy or dairy alternatives (such as soy drinks), choosing options that are low in fat and sugar.

• Eat some beans, legumes, fish, eggs, meat and other protein (including two servings of fish a week, one of which should be fatty)

• Choose unsaturated oils and spreads and eat them in small amounts

• Drink six to eight cups/glasses of water a day

• Adults should have less than 6 g of salt and 20 g of saturated fat for women or 30 g for men per day

Source: NHS Eatwell Guide

Research has been divided on whether or not people should eat breakfast.

A plethora of observational studies, unable to confirm a direct link, have suggested that those who eat breakfast are more likely to be thin.

Some Defenders of the Breakfast Theory I think this is because people who eat have more energy to be active throughout the day.

They also leave you feeling full longer, making you less likely to snack and help with making healthy food choices throughout the day, the researchers say.

Studies have also linked skipping breakfast with an increased risk of heart disease, obesity, diabetes, stroke, and high blood pressure. Experts still don’t understand the mechanism behind it.

The NHS tells people “don’t skip breakfast” as one of its eight “tips for healthy eating”, warning that it provides vital nutrients.

However, casting doubt on the health benefits of breakfast, a 2019 review of nearly a dozen studies, published in the british medical journalfound that skipping breakfast has no effect on weight.

And a growing number of studies have found that not eating first thing in the morning can actually help with weight loss, if done to help eating within a restricted eight to 12 hour window of time.

Research has linked eating all meals within an eight to 12 hour window, and fasting for the remaining 16 to 12 hours in a day, can help people lose weight by limiting late-night snacking and eating.

Dr Federica Amati, nutrition scientist at ZOE, a health research company that offers personalized dietary advice based on home tests, told MailOnline that the ‘general recommendation’ that everyone should eat breakfast ‘does not come from no specific scientific basis’. .

Food isn’t necessary to start the day or wake up, as the body’s internal clock “secretes the chemicals that help us wake up and get out of bed, whether we’ve had breakfast or not,” he said.

The results of large studies that found that people who eat breakfast are the healthiest are often due to factors other than the food itself, such as sleep patterns, according to Dr. Amati.

On top of this, urging people to eat breakfast first thing in the morning, when many aren’t hungry, “usually results in grabbing something quick and convenient,” he said.

Toast and jam, ultra-processed breakfast cereals, snack bars, cakes, and shakes provide “plenty of available sugars but not enough protein, fiber, and healthy fats to be considered a complete meal,” Dr. Amati said.

For example, a 45 g serving of Kellogg’s Crunchy Nut Chocolate Clusters has nearly half an adult’s sugar allowance, but only the recommended five percent fiber and seven percent protein per day.

Dr Amati said: “Eating a high-sugar meal on an empty stomach will often leave many of us feeling hungry and tired within a couple of hours of the meal when all the sugar has been absorbed and our body is left wanting other nutrients

“It would be better to skip this type of breakfast and have a meal with eggs, mushrooms, greens, tomatoes, beans, and some whole grains when you feel hungry a bit later.”

“Of course, if you wake up hungry, the same applies: it’s better to have a complete and nutritious meal that will keep you energized for longer in the day.”

So skipping breakfast isn’t “an issue for everyone,” added Dr. Amati.

“More important than having breakfast at a certain time is making sure that the first meal of the day is complete and nutritious,” he added.

Professor Jonathan Johnston, an expert in chronobiology and physiology at the University of Surrey, told MailOnline: “The breakfast literature is quite complex, largely because people who habitually skip breakfast often have other unhealthy characteristics. “.

These include being less healthy, eating a poorer diet, skipping meals regularly, and overeating, studies show.

Professor James Betts, an expert in metabolic physiology at the University of Bath, told MailOnline: “Most people seem to be under the impression that it’s incredibly important to eat breakfast every day.”

But he noted that studies on the importance of eating breakfast are “much less clear-cut than people think.”

Professor Betts said: “Most of the evidence generally shows little or no negative health effects of skipping breakfast…

“So the good news, or perhaps the disappointing news, is that whether or how much you eat in the morning won’t have a huge effect on most people’s health.”

He added: “The likelihood that any given person will benefit (from eating breakfast) will depend on the benefits they hope to achieve and how healthy their diet and lifestyle are.”