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Finally, Science Concludes: Your Body Is King, Not Breakfast!

Don’t beat yourself up if you skip breakfast. New research shows it might not make that much of a difference.

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Since childhood you’ve been told a million and one times – eat breakfast king size because it the most important meal of the day. But what if everything you knew about breakfast and its magical powers, like spiking metabolism and keeping you energised all day, were all wrong? What if your mom was right about everything, but this isn’t one of them?

Here’s a reality check on some of the biggest breakfast myths.

Myth #1 - You Can Eat Whatever You Want For Breakfast

Don’t beat yourself up if you skip breakfast. New research shows it might not make that much of a difference.
Eat wise, keep portion size in mind and even OD-ing on apparently ‘healthy’ sweet puffs could impact your health (Photo Courtesy: Tumblr/General Mills)

Nope. And definitely not the sugar-laden, boxed cereal.

The thing is that Nutrition Science is the most fickle, evolving science there is. It is just 30 years old and keeps changing with frequency. For the longest time, you were told that eggs are cholesterol bombs but the US FDA buckled to the goodness of eggs last year, when it admitted that dietary cholesterol is not the villain it is made out to be.

An analysis by the Indiana University School of Medicine, looked into many breakfast-related studies and found major flaws. The conclusion – many of these studies were observational and not based on actual, hard evidence. But correlation does not mean causation.

Fact: Breakfast is the most important meal of the day when it is going to be your only meal of the day. So eat, but don’t indulge.

Bottom line – If skipping breakfast implies binging later in the day, then sit down religiously for your morning meal. But if you are not genuinely hungry, don’t be a glutton and pass the plate.

Myth #2 - It Helps You Drop the Pounds

One thing all nutritionists agree on is the fact that skipping meals and staying hungry is the most unhealthy thing you can do for your body. Starving will not leave you skinny, but neither will packing in a ton of calories early in the morning.

Fact: A heavy breakfast is important only for athletes and those in high-intensity workout regimens. We all know what a task it is to drag yourself to work on a Monday morning, but it simply isn’t enough to burn all the calories from waffles and pancakes you gulp down in the name of carbs.

Myth #3 - Breakfast Is Essential For Heart Health

Don’t beat yourself up if you skip breakfast. New research shows it might not make that much of a difference.
Your heart health depends on what you eat and not when you eat. (Photo Courtesy: Tumblr/HANNESUNDIN)

Fact: Breakfast has long reigned as the king of meals but according to a research published in this month’s edition of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, breakfast has very little to do with your heart health.

Bottom line: A healthy person needs breakfast but your ticker’s state depends upon what you eat and not when you eat. If munching a pizza is what you do at 8am then forget about keeping your heart healthy. But if a small portion of a balanced meal is your idea to kick start the day, then go ahead, stomach it.

Myth #4 - It Will Keep You Fuller For Longer

Don’t beat yourself up if you skip breakfast. New research shows it might not make that much of a difference.
Just FYI, food cravings aren’t always a result of hunger. Check your water intake to check excess hunger (Photo Courtesy: Tumblr/Disney)

Fact: Will a solid meal help you power through a workout? Most likely. Will it fuel you for the whole day? Obviously not.

According to a University of Missouri study, skipping breakfast will cause you to feel really hungry at lunch and possibly leave you with a headache too, but if you are well hydrated, it is not linked to excess calorie consumption.

Bottom line: Scientists in this study found that binge-eating is not a result of hunger but that of habit, stress or boredom.

Myth #5 - Breakfast Will Boost Your Metabolism

That would be awesome but a six-week University of Bath study found that breakfast does not significantly enhance your metabolic rate. In fact, breakfast eaters burned a measly 11 calories more per day than those who skipped it.

11 calories? That’s a single piece of strawberry!

Bottom line: Eat it or skip it – there’s no disputing the fact that breakfast is a really important meal, but don’t eat if you’re not hungry or if it doesn’t fit with your body clock. Eat according to your needs and just stay away from the sugar-laden cereals and pastries.

(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)

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Topics:  Breakfast   Nutrition   Healthy Eating 

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