Are you one of those people who don’t eat breakfast? You’re not alone, there are plenty of adults who skip breakfast because they’re in a rush, distracted, or simply don’t feel hungry first thing in the morning. However, there are consequences that you should be aware of.
In theory, breakfast stabilizes your blood sugar, gives you energy and keeps you satiated, so you’re less likely to overeat later, according to a report by Elizabeth Passarella in the New York Times.
Why aren’t you hungry in the morning?
It may be because you ate dinner or had a snack before bedtime, so your body is still digesting from the night before.
However, “making your body handle more digestion when it should be resting can lead to worse sleep and weight gain,” warns Lindsay Malone, MD, a professor in the department of nutrition at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine.
Another reason for not feeling hungry in the morning is coffee, as coffee can initially suppress your appetite and give you a little energy, especially if you drink it with milk, which provides a little fat.
But this is a temporary matter. After some time, you notice that the effect of the coffee has disappeared, and after hours, you feel hungry.
Another reason is that you do not like breakfast food, and here we remind you that there is no rule that states that you must stick to cereals or eggs. Eat leftover spaghetti and meatballs from the night before. Eat a turkey sandwich.
If the meal is not appetizing, other options include a smoothie, a banana with peanut butter, for example, or a protein shake.
Why are you hungry in the morning?
“Physiologically, there are a lot of mechanisms that work to encourage our bodies to eat in the morning,” says Ivory Loh, a registered dietitian in Seattle.
But if you spend years skipping breakfast, your body may stop sending you the hunger signals it knows you’ll ignore.
What are the benefits of breakfast that you might miss by not eating it?
1- Breakfast provides you with energy
The body’s energy source is glucose. Glucose is broken down and absorbed from the carbohydrates you eat. The body stores most of its energy in the form of fat. But your body also stores some glucose in the form of glycogen, mostly in your liver, with smaller amounts in your muscles.
During times of fasting (not eating), such as at night, the liver breaks down glycogen and releases it into the bloodstream as glucose to keep blood sugar levels stable. This is especially important for your brain, which relies almost entirely on glucose for energy.
In the morning, after you’ve gone 12 hours without food, your glycogen stores are low. Once all the energy is depleted from your glycogen stores, your body begins breaking down fatty acids to produce the energy it needs. But without carbohydrates, fatty acids are only partially oxidized, which may reduce your energy levels.
Eating breakfast boosts your energy levels and restores your glycogen levels ready to keep your metabolism running throughout the day.
Skipping breakfast may seem like a good way to reduce your overall energy intake. But research shows that even with a higher energy intake, breakfast eaters tend to be more physically active in the morning than those who don’t eat until later in the day.
2- Breakfast provides you with vitamins, minerals, and essential nutrients
Breakfast food is rich in key nutrients such as:
- Folic acid
- Calcium
- Iron
- B vitamins
- Fiber.
Breakfast provides much of your total nutrient intake for the day. In fact, people who eat breakfast are more likely to meet recommended daily doses of vitamins and minerals than people who don’t.
3- Breakfast helps you control your weight
People who eat breakfast regularly are less likely to be overweight or obese. Research is still ongoing as to why this happens. It is believed that eating breakfast may help you control your weight, because it prevents large fluctuations in blood glucose levels, which helps you control your appetite.
Breakfast also keeps you feeling full, so you’re less likely to eat any foods close to when you feel really hungry (for example, high-energy foods, high-fat foods with added sugars or salt).
4- Breakfast enhances brain power
If you skip breakfast, you may find that you feel a little lethargic and struggle to focus on things. This is because your brain has not received the energy (glucose) it needs to function.
Studies show that skipping breakfast affects your mental performance, including your attention, ability to concentrate, and memory. This can make some tasks seem more difficult than they normally would be.
Children and teens who eat breakfast regularly tend to perform better academically than those who skip breakfast.
5- Eating a healthy breakfast may reduce the risk of disease
Compared to people who don’t eat breakfast, those who eat it regularly tend to have a lower risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes.
There is also some evidence that people who don’t eat breakfast may be at greater risk of developing cardiovascular disease.
6- Breakfast helps you choose better food
People who eat breakfast generally have healthier diets, have better eating habits, and are less likely to crave snacks during the day than people who skip breakfast.
Children who eat an insufficient breakfast are more likely to make poor nutritional choices not only for the rest of the day, but also in the long term.
People who skip breakfast tend to eat snacks in the mid-morning or afternoon. This may be a problem if these snacks are low in fibre, vitamins and minerals, but high in fat and salt. Without the extra energy that breakfast can provide, some people feel lethargic and turn to high-energy foods and drinks to help them get through the day.
If you skip breakfast, try eating a nutritious snack like fresh fruit, yogurt, vegetable sticks, hummus, or a whole-wheat sandwich to help you beat your mid-morning hunger.