There is an old adage to eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dine like a pauper. Monarchy may be long dead, but there is no undermining the importance of a balanced meal to start the day.
Doctors and nutritionists say breakfast should be a substantial meal because it helps replenish blood glucose levels and metabolic rates that drop after a night’s gap. Skipping this crucial meal will affect your cognitive functions and reduce your energy levels, they say.
Nagesh N.S, who heads the department of Surgical Gastroenterology at Bengaluru Medical College and Research Institute, says, “It may seem like skipping a meal will help you lose weight, but the opposite is true. Eating breakfast actually helps with weight loss and long-term weight management.”
“When you skip breakfast, your blood sugar level drops even lower. As a result, you get hungry and have less energy. This makes you indulge in impulsively snacking in the morning, often on high-fat sweets, or eating extra servings or bigger portions for lunch or dinner,” he says.
City-based nutritionist K.C. Raghu says breakfast should provide one-third of the daily requirement of about 2,000 calories for a normal person.
“The calories must come from complex carbs, protein and good fat, accompanied by a host of micronutrients and phytonutrients to balance nutrition,” he says.
Mr. Raghu, who says that traditional Indian whole grain breakfast dishes far outweigh readymade cereals and fruit juices, avers that a bowl of seasonal fruits is the best meal.
An ideal breakfast should have enough carbohydrates to boost cognitive functions. “The body requires more energy in the morning as people are usually active in the first half of the day. For this, the body requires fat apart from other nutrients,” he adds.