No matter how much of a cliché it may seem, you should already know that skipping breakfast is not a good idea when it comes to good health as well as losing weight.
Eating a doughnut, some type of other junk food, or even Wheaties doesn’t really cut it. On the other hand, the right breakfast can help you get your day started out right, keep you on a path to better health and help you to maintain or reach your desired weight.
Kick-starts the metabolism
Eating breakfast will get your metabolism revved up and going for the entire day. When your body gets the food it needs in the morning, it tells the brain that it’s time to start working to digest it, waking up the metabolism. If you skip breakfast, your body thinks it needs to conserve the energy it has, which can slow metabolism so you won’t burn as many calories throughout the day.
Clearer thinking
Your body needs fuel in the morning. Without it you’ll start to feel fatigued, and have trouble focusing, thinking and concentrating. It will also leave you more vulnerable to cravings, which means when those hunger pangs do hit, you’ll be more likely to make an unhealthy choice, going for whatever might be available. This can be a recipe for disaster when it comes to health and weight loss.
Better mood
Eating a healthy breakfast can help boost your mood for the entire day. You’ll have more energy, and it also helps to regulate blood sugar levels, which plays an important role in one’s mood.
What the wrong breakfast can do
The best breakfast foods provide that essential fuel the body needs for energy that lasts, but the worst breakfast foods can do the opposite. They often lead to a mid-morning crash, wreak havoc on the metabolism, cause weight gain and increase the risk of disease and illness.
Doughnuts and pastries are packed with sugar – typically ranging anywhere from 20 to 50 grams in each one. This can lead to a huge sugar crash, making you feel hungry soon after you’ve eaten, and causing cravings for more refined carbs. Not to mention the negative effects wheat has on your system – Dr. William Davis, author of Wheat Belly, says wheat is a “perfect, chronic poison”.
Those brightly colored sugary cereals are a health nightmare, not only packed with sugar, but artificial colors and a host of other chemicals that are known to cause all types of mental and physical issues.
Hitting the drive-thru for a sausage biscuit means your body will be fed highly processed food that is filled with trans fat, sodium and a number of toxins – raising your blood pressure and increasing your risk for stroke and certain cancers, as well as not doing much for your energy levels and mood.
So, what’s the right breakfast?
The most important thing is to find the right balance of protein, healthy fats and complex carbohydrates. That doesn’t necessarily have to mean typical breakfast foods, either. High-fiber foods that contain protein, such as eggs, fish and lean meats help to promote alertness and provide energy for the day.
For example, you might make an omelet using organic eggs and baby spinach leaves with some fresh berries on the side – or make a fruit and veggie filled smoothie, adding hemp seeds for essential protein and healthy fats.
If you’ve never been a “breakfast person,” or if you’ve been starting your day off with junk foods, you may find that a change to a healthy morning meal each day makes a significant difference in your health, your outlook and your waistline.
-The Alternative Daily
Sources:
https://www.everydayhealth.com/health-report/healthy-breakfast/importance-of-eating-breakfast.aspx
http://authoritynutrition.com/top-11-diet-foods-that-make-you-fat
http://health.clevelandclinic.org/2013/03/sluggish-start-the-5-worst-breakfast-foods
