Healthy Diet - The Importance of Breakfast

An old saying goes: Eat like a king in the morning, like a nobleman at lunchtime, and like a beggar in the evening. This is still true today: A healthy breakfast provides the energy required for the day. When breakfast is forgone, one feels limp, tired, unfocused and hungry in the morning... The optimal "momentum" for the day is lacking!

No wonder - at night the carbohydrate store is discharged and need to be filled at breakfast again to maintain physical and mental performance. A balanced breakfast recycles the the necessary nutrients.

But what is a balanced, healthy breakfast? - It should be simple and not strain the body, experts advise, as well as long-lasting and have great taste. Therefore, the whole grains play an important role at breakfast. Unlike the white flour, the carbohydrates contained in whole grain pastries are slowly released into the blood over a longer period of time. Thus, the blood sugar level rises moderately, rather than a sudden decrease in blood sugar which can lead to a mid-morning drop in performance. The fibre contained in whole grains also help bowel movement and digestion.

Fruit is also recommended for breakfast. An apple or other seasonal fruits supply the organism with numerous vitamins and minerals right from the start. Protein sources such as milk, yogurt and cheese round off a healthy breakfast for an excellent start to the day.

Also important for breakfast: time! And: Finding out what type of breakfast best suits your body's needs, because not everything is healthy and good for each and every individual. Apart from food intolerances such as celiac disease, fructose and lactose intolerance, there are people who do not eat breakfast in the morning and only drink tea or coffee and at mid-morning, they enjoy a croissant or a snack (Italians often eat later and therefore start their day without breakfast). Many Asians, however start off their day with a pasta, vegetables or rice soup. The British enjoy hearty beans, bacon, sausages and scrambled eggs and the Viennese breakfast is known for its Semmerl (rolls) with jam ...

It becomes apparent that a healthy breakfast is not the norm as advised by the experts. However, studies in the US and the UK show that the risk of becoming overweight may increase up to 400 percent when breakfast is forgone. Important to remember is to stay clear from chocolate cereals and other sweets as breakfast alternatives  ...