Let’s bust a diet myth, shall we?
Do you think breakfast is the most important meal of the day? I definitely
used to think it was…
You know, because I “heard” it… or “saw” it on TV… anyone remember Tony the
Tiger? And his famous ‘Frosties’? They bring out the TIGER in you!
…rrrriiiightttt…
Studies have previously claimed that eating breakfast is associated with
better health and lower body mass, so really it’s no wonder that my mother
forced me to have breakfast every day!
However, is there really a causal relationship? Does this mean that skipping
breakfast will make you unhealthy and fat?
Not really – these claims have been made merely from
observation, which is totally unreliable. Think about this – most people who
skip breakfast also tend to be less health conscious, with habits such as going
to bed later than those who eat breakfast. So generally, breakfast skippers tend
to have worse lifestyles. You can see how eating breakfast doesn’t necessarily
make you healthier, but rather those who eat breakfast are more likely to be
health conscious than those who don’t. This just shows how studies claiming that
having breakfast makes you healthier are merely correlations, as opposed to
actual causations!
A study by LeCheminant et al. showed that when people who did not usually
consume breakfast incorporated it into their diet for 4 weeks, they gained
weight and fat.
“Er… so wasn’t breakfast supposed to help you lose weight?” Merely
an observation people!
“Why did they put on weight?”
By eating breakfast they were adding more calories to their day. These people
significantly increased their calorie intake, especially those coming from
carbohydrates (i.e cereals loaded with sugar etc). As a result of the notion
that “breakfast is the most important meal of the day”, people have always
believed that eating something for breakfast is better than eating nothing, BUT
this is not the case when that “something” is junk food! People
go for the biscuits and the quick high calorie snacks, when in fact it is better
to wait, and instead eat something more nutritious when you feel hungry
again.
Since the people in the study didn’t reduce calorie intake on their other
meals, nor increase their physical activity, they did not compensate for the
increased calorie intake from their breakfast, so these people actually gained
weight instead!
Now I’m not saying that people shouldn’t eat breakfast. Some people prefer to
eat in the morning, whereas others don’t – it’s totally up to your own
preference! BUT, those who do eat breakfast should be aware
that the meal should be nutritious, as well as be sure that their daily calorie
intake is not greater than their daily calorie expenditure. In other words, your
weight loss or weight gain is attributable to the amount of calories you
consume, regardless of whether you eat breakfast or not!
