Consume the dish that helps you maintain a healthy weight.
Overview
While skipping a meal might seem like a good way to keep your food intake under control, research actually shows it can hurt your efforts at weight control. Breakfast is the one meal you should always eat if you're trying to keep a reasonable waistline. Here’s the scoop...
Researchers at the University of Bath in England say the importance of breakfast may be based on what you do after eating, not necessarily on what or how you eat. In a study focusing on the effects breakfast has on physical activity for people who are very overweight, they found that the meal could benefit health by making folks more active in the morning.
While the research did not find that eating breakfast resulted in lost weight during the six-week experiment, it did show that the overweight participants in the study who ate breakfast did more exercise and ate less food during the rest of the day. Compared to the people who skipped breakfast, they also improved their insulin sensitivity – which means their blood sugar was under better control and their risk for diabetes dropped.
In other research performed at Bath, the scientists found that when people whose weight was normal regularly ate breakfast, their blood sugar also remained more stable during the day, instead of rising and falling drastically. And when these folks exercised, they burned more calories than they did when they skipped breakfast.
Breakfast as a Tool for Weight Control
A study at Cornell strongly supports the benefits of breakfast for keeping your weight down. The researchers analyzed the breakfast habits of individuals who maintained their weight without struggling with their waistlines. They found that among these individuals, only a small percentage skipped breakfast, while the majority usually ate this meal.
"One important takeaway from this study is that a high rate of people who maintain their weight actually eat breakfast instead of skipping, which is consistent with previous research on the importance of breakfast," says researcher Anna-Leena Vuorinen. "But what stands out is that they not only ate breakfast, but that they ate healthful foods like fruits and vegetables. Also, egg consumption was higher than expected."
What’s the Best Breakfast?
In selecting the best foods to eat for breakfast, studies show that focusing on foods high in protein, like eggs and meat, is beneficial. A study at the University of Missouri-Columbia reveals that a breakfast high in protein increases the neurotransmitter dopamine in the brain – leading to more meal satisfaction and aiding in resisting food cravings and overeating throughout the day.
"Our research showed that people experience a significant decline in cravings for sweet foods when they eat breakfast," says researcher Heather Leidy. "However, breakfasts high in protein also reduce cravings for savory or high-fat foods. Conversely, if breakfast is skipped, these cravings tend to increase throughout the day."
Eating breakfast, particularly a breakfast high in protein, can counteract the urge to overeat that is often fueled by constant exposure to food advertising. Research suggests that a protein intake of 25 to 30 grams at breakfast, such as the amount found in an egg (6 grams) and 3 ounces of meat (22 grams), can help control blood sugar and aid in weight management.
So don’t hesitate to have a high protein meal in the morning. A high protein breakfast can help you feel more satiated throughout the day and may contribute to easier weight management.