For most, the morning is hectic, but it’s also the most important time of the day to consume food. Not only is breakfast beneficial to the start of the day but, it’s beneficial to maintaining lifelong health.
“[Breakfast] wakes your body up, starts your brain power and fuels your energy for the day,” culinary teacher Tara Wood said.
Breakfast jump starts the morning and fuels the body with energy and helps maintain better concentration throughout the day. It helps maintain weight better and gives the body the nutrients it needs. Making time in the morning for breakfast also helps maintain a healthy cholesterol level.
According to registered dietician Sharon Coplin at the Ohio State University, breakfast is essential to improvement in cognitive learning, physical endurance, and the overall feeling of well-being.
“If I don’t [eat breakfast], I crash during the day and I just can’t function,” junior Ashlyn Slamans said.
The Mayo Clinic has said that skipping out on breakfast takes important nutritional value out of one’s diet.
Claudia Peñuela, a nutritionist at the University of Florida, recommends varying breakfast foods and including at least three groups in the food pyramid. Avoiding sugary and fast food is helpful because despite instant bursts of energy, later blood sugar levels will crash later.
Peñuela recommends choosing whole fruit and include whole grain such as ready-to-go cereal. Vitamins, mineral and fibers are included in both of those selections.
Peñuela suggests looking at the nutrition facts for fiber, sugar, vitamin and mineral contents. They also recommend staying away from products that are high in calories, fat and sugar.
She recommends a breakfast contain three grams or more of dietary fiber, and less than three grams of fat and eight grams of sugar.
If time is a factor in the morning, Peñuela suggests foods such as whole-grain toast with a spread of 100 percent fruit and a cup of milk or yogurt.
Peñuela also recommends smoothies made with milk or yogurt, any kind of fresh fruit and a topping of whole grain cereal.
