Most of us by now are aware that eating breakfast is one of the most important facets of healthy eating. However, when was the last time you heard what type of breakfast we should be eating? As athletes, fitness enthusiasts, or even people with a generally active lifestyle, we should be striving to eat meals that give us optimum energy levels.
Breakfast skipping has become somewhat of a norm; in fact, up to 75 percent of overweight adolescents frequently skip breakfast.
We’ve known for a while that breakfast skipping (BS) is strongly connected to late-day over-indulgence, but we did not know for certain whether a regular breakfast, specifically a protein-rich (PR) breakfast, could lead to a healthier appetite and increased energy intake levels as well as possible weight loss—until recently.
Leidy and Racki (2010) conducted a study to investigate the effect of consuming a normal-protein (PN) breakfast versus protein-rich (PR) breakfast using appetite and satiety, as well as hormonal responses and daily food intake, to measure changes in “breakfast-skipping” adolescents.
The results of the study indicated that
1) a PR breakfast led to greater reductions in appetite than both BS and PN;
2) while satiety was greater following both PR and PN breakfast meals, compared to BS, the PR breakfast had the most positive effect;
3) while greater PYY (appetite-suppressing hormone) concentrations were observed following both breakfast meals versus BS, there was no difference between PN and PR meals;
4) and PR led to fewer kcal consumed at lunch compared to PN and BS.
What we can take away from all of this is that the protein-rich breakfast fared the best in reducing your appetite, keeping you satisfied longer, and leading you to consume fewer calories at lunchtime. What will you have for breakfast tomorrow morning?
Here are some examples of protein-rich breakfasts:
-3–4 eggs, spinach, mushrooms, and a slice of multi-grain toast.
-Whey isolate protein powder, 1 tablespoon of all-natural peanut butter, and ½ cup of oatmeal with ¼ cup of blueberries.
-½ cup of cooked quinoa, ¼ cup of blueberries, cinnamon, flaxseeds, ¼ cup of diced almonds, and 1 cup of whey isolate protein powder.
-1 cup of egg whites, 1 cup of spinach, ½ cup of oatmeal, ¼ cup of blue berries, and cinnamon.
Leidy, H., & Racki, E. (2010). “The addition of a protein-rich breakfast and its effects on acute appetite control and food intake in “breakfast-skipping” adolescents.” International Journal of Obesity (2010) 34, 1125–1133.