In recognition of the vast number of students who skip breakfast for various reasons including “no time to eat”, “not hungry” “weight management” etc., this blog looks at the importance of breakfast and offers a list of quick and easy options that will provide the energy required for early morning classes.
A balanced breakfast
Breakfast is often referred as "the most essential meal of the day." Breakfast, as the name implies, is a meal that breaks the overnight fast. It restores glucose supply to increase energy and alertness while also giving other important nutrients for optimum health.
A balanced breakfast contains a good source of the 3 macronutrients; protein, carbohydrate and fat, which helps to keep you satiated for longer. It can also improve our mood and concentration in the morning until your next meal. Skipping or having a low-quality breakfast can have a negative impact on cognitive performance, leading to a decrease in brain function, sluggish reactions, and a decreased attention span (1).
The Healthy Ireland survey in 2015 found that approximately 4 in 10 (40%) 15-24 year old’s do not have breakfast every day (2). Failure to eat something at the start of the day might have unexpectedly substantial health and performance implications (3).
The importance of the quality of breakfast, rather than just whether breakfast is eaten or skipped is sometimes overlooked but studies have associated a good quality breakfast with lower levels of stress and depression (4) .
To try to solve skipping breakfast due to time constraints, here are some examples of quick and easy “on the go” recipes:
Each of these can be made the night before and stored in the fridge or quickly thrown together in the morning.
Nutritious breakfasts are high in key nutrients including calcium, folate, iron, fibre and vitamin B. Those who eat breakfast are more likely to meet their daily recommended intake of vitamins and minerals than those who chose to skip it. This can have a positive impact not only on our health but even academic results (5).
A healthy breakfast has many benefits, so think again next time you go to skip it!
Fruit Smoothie (frozen berries, mango, fruit juice and yoghurt)
Overnight Oats (2:1 ratio milk: oats)
Granola and Yoghurt (check that the granola sugar content isn’t too high)
Smoothie bowl (Add 1 tbsp of natural Greek yoghurt, your choice of fruit and seeds/nuts of your choosing, this can be made the night before)
Egg Muffin (these can be made in advance and frozen, thaw in the fridge overnight)
Breakfast bagel (1 whole meal muffin, 1 poached egg and 1 turkey rasher)
1. https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12889-017-4017-1#citeas
3. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1878450X17300045#bib50
