Wake up to a good breakfast

It’s widely recommended that your morning meal should provide around 20% of your daily energy. It should also contribute significantly to your daily nutrient intake, including carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, protein and fibre. And children need to get up to a quarter of their daily calcium from their breakfast too^[1]. So breakfast has a pretty big job to do!

Breakfast helps you be prepared for the day ahead and if you skip it you’ll miss out on the goodness you need to get going. You might think you can get what you’ve missed later on in the day – but studies show that if you don't get the right nutrients first thing in the morning, it’s quite hard to make up for them during the day.^[2]

Did you know?

Research shows that people who eat breakfast tend to make better food choices and have a higher nutrient intake than those who don’t.^[3] It’s as simple as that!

Missing breakfast isn’t a great way to try to lose weight. That’s because if you miss out on nutrients when getting up, you’ll probably feel hungry as the morning goes on.^[4] And you’ll be more likely to give in to unhealthy cravings! What’s more, studies show that people who eat breakfast tend to have a healthier diet than those who don’t.^[5]

So, there you have it… breakfast really does give you a great start to the day. When you next see someone with a spring in their step in the morning, who knows, maybe they started their day with a nutritious, balanced breakfast!

1. O'Neil CE, Byrd-Bredbenner C, Hayes D et al (2014) The role of breakfast in health: definition and criteria for a quality breakfast. J Acad Nutr Diet. Dec;114(12 Suppl):S8-S26
2. Cho S, Dietrich M, Brown CJ et al (2003) The effect of breakfast type on total daily energy intake and body mass index: results from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III). J Am Coll Nutr. Aug;22(4):296-302. • Serra Majem L et al (2004) Nutricion infanil y juvenile. Estudio enKid. Elsevier Espana: Volume 5. • Rampersaud GC, Pereira MA, Girard BL et al (2005) Breakfast habits, nutritional status, body weight, and academic performance in children and adolescents. J Am Diet Assoc. May;105(5):743-60.
3. Bertrais S, Polo Luque ML, Preziosi P McMonagle et al (2000) Contribution of ready-to-eat cereals to nutrition intakes in French Adults and relations with corpulence. Ann Nutr Metab. 44(5-6):249-55. • Albertson AM et al. (2001) Ready to eat cereal consumption habits of America adults: is there a relationship with body mass index? J Am Coll Nutr, 20: 585. • Albertson AM, Anderson GH, Crockett SJ et al (2003) Ready-to-eat cereal consumption: its relationship with BMI and nutrient intake of children aged 4 to 12 years. J Am Diet Assoc. 103:1613-19.
4. Williams PG (2014) The benefits of breakfast cereal consumption: a systematic review of the evidence base. Adv Nutr. Sep 15;5(5):636S-673S.
5. Preziosi P, Galan P, Deheeger M et al (1999) Breakfast type, daily nutrient intakes and vitamin and mineral status of French children, adolescents, and adults. J Am Coll Nutr. Apr;18(2):171-8.