But with the development of food concepts over the past decade, and the emergence of new patterns of non-traditional diets, breakfast is no longer seen as the most important meal, yet confirming or denying its importance is a somewhat complicated issue.
Breakfast is often referred to as the most important meal of the day after many hours of sleep, as it provides the body with essential nutrients needed for good health.
This information has continued to circulate throughout the past decades, and it is likely that it began after nutritional advice given by the American nutritionist Adele Davis in the sixties of the last century about the importance of eating breakfast, summed it up by saying at the time: "Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a pauper."
However, with the development of nutritional concepts during the past decade, and the emergence of new patterns of non-traditional diets, breakfast is no longer seen as the most important meal. Nevertheless, confirming or denying its importance is a somewhat complicated issue, as many recent research indicates that missing breakfast It is not harmful, contrary to the prevailing belief based on many other studies that see the opposite.
Is breakfast the main meal of the day?
According to a meta-analysis involving more than 30,000 people over a period of more than 10 years, adults who did not eat breakfast were more likely to be deficient in calcium, iron, folic acid and several vitamins, and their overall diet quality was poorer. Significantly worse compared to those who ate breakfast regularly, and the study relied on these results to confirm the importance of breakfast.
But in fact, the same study stated that this deficiency occurred due to the lack of consumption of these nutrients later in the day in other meals, as breakfast itself provides a unique opportunity to consume important nutrients that may be less present in subsequent meals.
This finding led the researchers to ask: What if these elements were replaced during the day? Or what if breakfast didn't even contain these important nutrients? Does breakfast then lose its alleged importance?
Studies contrary to popular belief indicate that as long as a person can include important nutrients during other meals, it may not be a problem to miss breakfast, and one of these studies described breakfast as "just another meal" rather than "the most important meal of the day . "
Other studies also focus their attention on the need to pay attention to the quality of breakfast itself, rather than focusing on the point of missing breakfast or not.
On the other hand, it was observed that people who regularly eat breakfast daily had a lower chance of developing various diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, and problems related to body metabolism.
But the mounting opinions by modern nutritionists are based on the fact that these studies can only indicate that those who ate breakfast were at a lower risk of developing these diseases without proving that breakfast is the cause in itself, based on the fact that the purported benefits of eating breakfast are derived in the first place. The first are observational studies, such as the aforementioned case, which can't really prove a cause-and-effect relationship.
Those who eat breakfast on a regular basis often pay more attention to their total intake of nutrients , and are keen to exercise commitment and control the level of psychological stress, which reflects positively on health in general.
On the contrary, those who miss breakfast tend to have unhealthy lifestyle habits such as smoking, in addition to following a diet high in fat, cholesterol and calories.
When analyzing these observations from another angle, many researchers believe that this leads them to conclude that the lifestyle followed is what actually contributes to better health, not eating breakfast.
Skipping breakfast and gaining weight
One of the most thorny topics regarding skipping breakfast is its association with weight gain and higher rates of obesity, but the researchers say that the majority of studies discussing this association do not address causation and we find them asking the following question: Are people who skip breakfast more likely to end up with a higher BMI? known as BMI (weight in kilograms divided by height in metres), or are people with a higher body mass index more likely to skip breakfast as part of a fat loss strategy or for other reasons?
An analytical study , in which a systematic review of nine studies that examined the relationship between missing breakfast and weight gain, concluded that it provided the minimum amount of evidence to prove the existence of a link. The study also drew attention to the lack of consistency in the methodology used in such studies, in addition to the need to There is a consistent and clear definition of the terms skipping or eating breakfast.
Is skipping breakfast a personal choice?
Although science suggests that breakfast may not be the most important meal of the day, it is still important, and what is "important" needs to be objectively defined.
And about skipping breakfast or not, there is no absolute answer, as this depends on the person himself, his lifestyle, and his nutritional and healthy behaviors in general. If the individual consumes appropriate amounts of calories and nutrients throughout the day, then missing breakfast will not make much difference.
If you do not feel hungry in the morning and do not feel that you need breakfast, do not eat it. But if you are one of those who wake up hungry, then of course you should eat breakfast, it is that simple.
The important thing is to eat consciously, and eat a healthy breakfast, and it is recommended that it be rich in protein and fiber. Of course, there are some caveats , as it is preferable for pregnant or breastfeeding women not to miss breakfast. It is also recommended to eat breakfast regularly for both groups of children and adolescents, as they are in a period of growth. It is also Breakfast is a must for morning exercisers, and those who suffer from problems with sugar levels or any other special conditions determined by the health care provider are added to the list.
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