6 Reasons Why Breakfast is the Most Important Meal of the Day

We’ve all heard since we were little kids that “breakfast is the most important meal of the day.” But as you’ve grown up, your list of reasons to put off or skip breakfast has probably grown, too. Everyday pressures like balancing getting enough sleep and still making it to work on time, or more personal reasons like the desire to lose weight or just not feeling great after eating a heavy breakfast, are all valid reasons many of us don’t always eat our morning meal.

But, excuses aside, breakfast truly is still the most important meal of the day. Our bodies work all night to regulate, repair, and restore at a cellular level, so our system looks forward to the relief and replenishment that nutrients in a good breakfast provide. Eating breakfast also supplies the energy we need to get through the day and can even help us lose weight or ward off disease.

If you’ve been skipping breakfast, don’t feel bad. There’s a lot of messaging and societal pressure that puts breakfast on the backburner. There are so many reasons to nosh in the a.m. but here are six that we hope will make you hungry.

1. Breakfast Breaks the Fasting Cycle

A old fashioned alarm clock next to an empty plate with a fork and knife.

The first and the most obvious reason every breakfast-advocating dietician will name is that breakfast breaks the fasting cycle that lasted while you were sleeping at night. Usually, the time stretch between the last meal before bed and breakfast is the longest that our body has to function without additional fuel.

The main source of energy for our body is glucose, usually received from carbohydrates. Our body stores this whatever glucose it doesn’t use as fat, but a small amount of glucose is also preserved in our liver as glycogen. This stored substance is accessed during the night, as the liver breaks down glycogen and releases it into the bloodstream to stabilize sugar levels during times of no food intake.

In the morning, glycogen storage is exhausted so our body demands fuel. Having breakfast within the first two hours after waking up helps restore your body’s glucose levels.

2. Eating Breakfast Gives You Energy

A man running on sand with a backpack clearly is full of energy.

Not only does breakfast break the fasting cycle, but it also provides you with enough energy to push through the first half of the day. A substantial breakfast will restore your glycogen levels and boost metabolism so that you’re full of energy to take on work, studying, or whatever else comes your way.

Moreover, as breakfast boosts your metabolism in the morning, people who eat their morning meal are tend toward healthier digestion and increased capacity for physical activity. The latter is obviously great for fighting midday fatigue.

We also have that one organ that just can’t live without a sugar rush – it’s our brain. Eating a balanced breakfast that includes carbohydrates and fructose will fuel your brain so that you’re able to focus, reason, as well as digest and process information.

3. Eating Breakfast Contributes to Better Weight Management

A mug full of eggs with a measuring tape around it.

It sounds counterintuitive, but breakfast is also important for your weight loss. You now know that the liver regulates sugar levels in your blood during sleep when there is no external source of glycogen. So, if you skip breakfast, your body starts to break down the glucose from your fat stores.

Although this might seem like a logical way to lose weight, well… not exactly. Skipping the first meal of the day in an attempt to cut calories intake causes your insulin to spike and fall, which stresses out your system.

After burning its glycogen stores all night, your body expects some nourishment in the form of breakfast to help make up for what’s been depleted. When those morning nutrients aren’t received, your body interprets this as a signal of scarce resources and will actually start storing more glucose in your body, leading to a bodyweight increase.

Eating breakfast also prevents you from nibbling on unhealthy snacks throughout the day. As we are busy people, everyday tasks require lots of energy and concentration. For those who prefer to skip meals, the afternoon is usually filled with chocolate bars or chips – processed sugar, salt, and fat that can satisfy hunger for a short time, but basically aren’t of much nutritional value. As a result, you have a greater chance to gain excess weight.

It’s been scientifically observed that breakfast-eaters not only eat healthier but can generally eat more and still lose weight. Apparently, people who don’t skip breakfast and eat more calories throughout the day than their breakfast-skipping counterparts are more likely to lose greater amounts of weight, as their bodies aren’t stressed about food resources and thus don’t start storing glucose for a rainy day.

4. Breakfast Contains Necessary Vitamins & Minerals

A chalkboard with an avocado in the middle lists the vitamins and minerals avocados consist of.

We’ve all heard “a part of this balanced breakfast” on cereal commercials growing up. While it’s always smart to consider the source (sugary cereal manufacturers have basically hijacked the term), the idea of a complete or balanced breakfast is not totally unfounded. Many of the traditional breakfast images we’re presented with – oatmeal with fruits, smoothie bowls, or avocado toasts – do represent a real-life example of the nutritious and tasty food that can benefit our bodies after a long night’s work.

Healthy breakfast foods are the source of various vitamins and nutrients and provide sufficient amounts of calcium and fiber. Adding fruits and vegetables to your breakfast meal will provide you with crucial vitamins and minerals, such as vitamins A (beta-carotene), C, and E, as well as zinc, phosphorous, magnesium, and folic acid.

As an example, protein in an omelet or Greek yogurt keeps you full and satisfied for a longer period, thus helping you dodge overeating while providing your body with necessary nutrients.

5. Breakfast Can Help You Dodge Diseases

Flax seeds in the shape of a heart sit on a table with a stethoscope.

If you’re not already a breakfast-eater, there are several health benefits that may help you change your mind.

First, eating a morning meal helps reduce your risk for diabetes. For people who skip breakfast or put it off for hours after waking, there is a bigger risk for suffering from type 2 diabetes due to the constant steep spikes and crashes in insulin levels that stress and confuse your system. Poor eating habits, like a daily afternoon candy bar, often result as your body tries to cope with and regulate wildly fluctuating blood glucose levels.

And if you have a habit of overeating (after skipping breakfast), you may be at the risk of developing heart disease. Being overweight as a result of irregular eating usually causes high cholesterol levels and blood pressure issues. Some studies have proven that people who eat in the morning have lower chances of developing heart disease, unlike those who skip.

Fiber has a host of health benefits, and the highest fiber intake of the day is usually associated with breakfast (at least for a Western diet). Fiber is known to not only fuel our bodies, but also to reduce cholesterol levels, regulate the use of sugars, maintain satiety, and stabilize blood sugar.

Whole grains, leafy greens, and fruits should become regular at your breakfast table (and overall) as they are rich in fibers, fundamental for the healthy functioning of your body.

6. Breakfast > Dinner

A buffet of breakfast options sit out on a table.

By now that it’s pretty clear that, even if you’re not a fan of eating first thing in the morning, breakfast is pretty important. But if you’re already a breakfast lover, you may be wondering if breakfast should actually be the biggest meal of your day. And the answer may very well be yes.

Studies have shown that eating a hearty breakfast of around 700 calories is good for promoting weight loss, as well as reducing the risk for heart disease, high cholesterol, and type 2 diabetes. Thus, switching to a heavier breakfast and light dinner is believed by some to be an effective way to a healthy and fit body.

However, having a calorie-dense breakfast does not mean overeating or indulging yourself with unhealthy stuff. Breakfast is necessary to boost your metabolism, so you should give your stomach just enough to start its work and get you through the day until it’s lunchtime.

In Conclusion

Now that you know the powerful impact breakfast has on our health (and weight), you should definitely try and make friends with those pancakes and egg scrambles. Or, if breakfast just isn’t your thing, at the very least find a bar or breakfast drink that revitalizes you without weighing you down so that you can give your body the calories and nutrients it craves first thing.

Breakfast does not have to be boring! With all the endless options available, you can go to bed the night before inspired by the next breakfast idea you’d like to try!