Is Breakfast The Most Important Meal Of The Day?

We have all heard, “breakfast is the most important meal of the day”. While I’m not sure I completely agree, I do know that breakfast is important. Starting your day off with a protein and nutrient-dense meal or snack can help set you up for success.

As the name suggests, breakfast breaks the overnight fasting period. It is a time to give much-needed vitamins and minerals to the body. This is especially true about protein because our body does not have a storage reservoir for protein.

We must ingest protein consistently throughout the day to meet our needs. And research proves that consistency of ingestion (every 3-4 hours) is more important than the total amount consumed for building muscle mass. Very generally speaking, we want to aim for 30 grams of protein at breakfast; 15-20 grams if we are looking to lose weight yet manage hunger.

Additionally, a study by the American Journal of Epidemiology found that people who skipped breakfast were almost five times more likely to be obese. And another study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology found participants who never ate breakfast were 87 percent more likely to die from cardiovascular disease and stroke than people who ate breakfast every day.

So not only is it important in terms of nutrition, but also for overall health and mortality.

Some of my go-to protein-packed options for breakfast include:

• Chia seed pudding
• Eggs scramble with your favorite meat, onions, pepper, and a fruit cup
• Greek yogurt parfait with chopped nuts
• Peanut butter and banana oatmeal
• Leftovers (who said breakfast needs to be breakfast food?)