Make Time For Breakfast

“Skipping Cereal and Eggs, and Packing on Pounds” is the title of an article in The New York Times that says, “A new study reports that the more often adolescents eat breakfast, the less likely they are to be overweight” (1). We have all heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and this study presents facts that support that idea. The study was done on a random group of children (all from different races and economic backgrounds) with an average age of 15. 1,215 girls and 1,007 boys were observed for a period of five years and weight results were typically better for those who ate breakfast versus those who didn’t.

“Why eating breakfast should lead to fewer unwanted pounds is unclear, but the study found that breakfast eaters consumed greater amounts of carbohydrates and fiber, got fewer calories from fat and exercised more” (1). Results showed that people who ate breakfast had more energy throughout the day and didn’t feel as hungry as those who skipped eating. At the beginning of the study, breakfast eaters were thinner and more fit, those who didn’t were usually heavier, and in between were those who only sometimes had breakfast. As the article said, the study didn’t say why people who ate in the morning were thinner but the fact that breakfast eaters were thinner held true across different economic statuses, races, and genders. So to stay healthy, whatever the reason, breakfast shouldn’t be missed.



Citation:

Bakalar, Nicholas. "Skipping Cereal and Eggs, and Packing on Pounds."
The New York Times. (25 March 2008). 25 March 2008.
[http://www.nytimes.com]. Path: Most Popular; Most E-mailed.