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The Benefits of Eating Breakfast

We have all been told that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but as busy college students, mothers, working professionals, or all three, we oftentimes don’t have time for breakfast and it’s really difficult to eat a plate of scrambled eggs while we’re rushing out the door (well, some of you more talented folks might be able to, but I certainly can’t). Why should we eat breakfast every morning? What does it do? How am I, as a woman, going to benefit from eating breakfast?

Actually, eating breakfast does have certain health benefits for women.  According to WebMD, not only can skipping breakfast slow your metabolism, causing weight gain, but it can also put women at a higher risk of heart disease. A recent study found that women who skipped breakfast every day for two weeks ate more during the rest of the day and developed higher LDL or “bad” cholesterol levels, which makes women less sensitive to insulin. The study also found that eating breakfast can reduce the risk of obesity in women by 35-50%, since women who ate breakfast ate less the rest of the day.  To get the full benefit of eating breakfast, another article advises that you should eat breakfast within an hour of waking, before your blood sugar starts to drop. 

So, to get you started on your on-the-go breakfast ideas, I have a few suggestions. It’s always easier to grab something as you’re going out the door, so try to prepare breakfast before you go to bed. Fruit is always a good idea. Apples and bananas can be eaten with no preparation. If you like grapes, try to separate them in individual sandwich baggies when you buy them so you can just grab them on your way out the door. Pita pockets are great too. You can stuff them with anything you want and eat it one-handed without worrying if anything is falling out the other side. I always think bagels and toast are great, but they take a little more preparation in the morning. Cheese sticks and cheese cubes are always a good idea as well, and they are a good source of calcium, something women especially need to fight off calcium deficiencies and bone loss later in life. A smoothie or a milkshake can be packed with calcium and they are always filling and easy to eat, but also take more time to make in the morning. Finally, yogurt is a great on-the-go food packed with calcium.

I always think that I’m in a better mood in the morning if I’ve eaten breakfast (I’ve been known for being kind of a grouch any time before 11 AM) and I notice that I eat less during the day. My personal favorites are cheese sticks, grapes, and tomato soup in a travel mug. Tomato soup is a little less traditional, but sometimes if I get up really early I don’t want to eat any solid foods, so soup in a travel mug is great. And no matter what it is I end up grabbing for breakfast, I always have a glass of milk too.

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