Breakfast Backtrack: Maybe Skipping The Morning Meal Isn't So Bad

[LiberalArkie]

Is breakfast really the most important meal of the day? And does eating a morning meal help us maintain a healthy weight?

The breakfast-is-best dogma is based on a blend of cultural tradition and science (and more than a little cereal marketing.)

Some of the earliest evidence goes back to the 1960s, when researchers in Alameda County, Calif., documented residents' everyday habits. The long-term study linked eating breakfast — along with other lifestyle choices, including a good night's sleep and regular exercise — to improved health and longevity.

But in recent years, this association has come under more scrutiny. And what's emerged points to a more complicated conclusion.

Snip


http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2016/05/13/477794736/breakfast-blowback-maybe-skipping-the-morning-meal-isnt-so-bad

[pmorlan1]

1. Not a Breakfast person

I've never liked eating when I first get up. I typically don't eat until lunchtime. Sometimes I might have something around 10 but never before 10 even though I'm up quite early.

[LisaM]

2. Kind of good news for me, but

I am not going to start eating eggs with pumpkin seeds and mixed greens.

[Arkansas Granny]

3. I haven't eaten breakfast since I was in my teens. I'm just not hungry when I wake up.

I might have a little snack before noon, but that's usually a 4 oz. cup of yogurt or a piece of lunch meat wrapped in a lettuce leaf.

[longship]

4. Coffee! The only breakfast.

(Other than whiskey, I mean.)

However, I confess to liking Cream of Wheat and Malt-O-Meal in the morning. That is, along with rye whiskey in my coffee.

[FrodosPet]

12. Irish Coffee! The Breakfast of Champions!

[a kennedy]

18. Oh my, now if that was a real shamrock and NOT a four leaf clover I'd be all in.....

[longship]

14. That works, too.

My best to you!

[Warpy]

5. Breakfast is a pretty recent invention

For most of human history, the first meal of the day took place after several hours of hard farm work. The simple reason was that the fires had to be laid and the food prepared and that took time. Unless it was harvest time with everybody pressed into service in the fields, that midday meal was the biggest of the day. Supper was usually small and simple.

I've never been a breakfast person but I now need to eat something to keep my morning meds from chewing holes in my gut. Today it was a piece of toast with peanut butter. There's no way I could face heavy grease like bacon and eggs first thing in the morning.

[LiberalArkie]

6. I take about 13 pills in the morning and a 1/2 glass of skim milk works like a champ.

I can't get them all down without the milk, water makes it hard to swallow.

[Warpy]

8. Lactose intolerance here

I started out with protein smoothies, graduated to toast and peanut butter.

[LiberalArkie]

9. I never could get them down without something smooth to wash them down. When I used

water, some would get caught in my throat even if I tried to swallow 1 at a time. But anything like milk does the job, I just hate fighting to get them down to my stomach.

[Freddie]

11. Husband takes about 13 pills

And still gags on them. Will not try my moms trick (she took countless pills and gagged too) of taking them with yogurt or a banana.

[longship]

15. Skim milk???? Horrible stuff!

Whole milk has flavor. Skim milk is rubbish. Might as well drink water.

Do you eat ice cream?

[jberryhill]

7. Poached egg on bagel

and I'm good to go.

However, I find that staying in bed until lunchtime solves this riddle.

[csziggy]

17. When I was running a horse farm, I'd feed the horses first

Then take a break and eat my breakfast before going back to the barn to put the horses out, clean the stalls and do the other chores.

After I had to stop running the farm because of injuries, I had to eat breakfast first thing for the same reason you do - to cushion the pills. I've gotten used to that and can't go out to do any physical work without something in my tummy. And like you, I can't face anything greasy in the mornings.

I've been tempted to try egg muffins - eggs cooked in a muffin tin, with no carbohydrates. Some recipes add a bit of bacon, ham or cheese, some add other things, but the mix is baked until just set. They can be stored and reheated.

Here is a sample recipe but the various are many:

Low Carb Egg Breakfast Muffins
Serves: 6 muffins
Ingredients

(To go 12 muffin full throttle, just double the batch)
1 bell pepper (your favourite colour)
3 spring onions
4 little cherry tomatoes/one normal tomato
6 Eggs
A good pinch of salt (about ¼ to ½ tsp)
12 slot muffin tin

Optional - these all go great. Add whatever you fancy!
2 slices cheese; around 50g (eg. cheddar)
Handful spinach/green leaves
2-3 splashes of hot sauce or curry powder
Baking paper or muffin cups (only if you don't have a nonstick muffin tin)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 200°C/ 390°F.
Wash and dice the pepper, onions and tomatoes and put them in a large mixing bowl.
Add the eggs and salt and mix well. Pro tip - crack the eggs separately before adding. That way if you get a dodgy one, it won’t ruin the whole meal.
Optionally add some hot sauce, curry powder...whatever you like. Hot sauce is great!
Grease the muffin tin with oil and kitchen paper/baking brush and pour the egg mixture evenly into the muffin slots. (If you think they might still stick to the pan use some muffin cups or cut out some baking paper and to use as cups - definitely saves time on doing the washing up
If you’re so inclined then layering some cheese over the top of each muffin before they go into the oven is a delicious addition! You can also mix in the cheese to the batter.
Pop the tray into the oven for 15-18 minutes or until the tops are firm to the touch.
http://hurrythefoodup.com/low-carb-egg-breakfast-muffins/

[Freddie]

10. Not much breakfast either

Coffee and my daily meds (not many).
Late am snack, yogurt
Lunch (work days) a protein shake & 100 calorie pretzels
Late afternoon snack 100 calorie popcorn (or 2 bags if truly starving)
Dinner--a good meal (meat, potato, veg, salad)
More flexible on weekends but still try to keep around 1500 calories.
Lost 14 lbs since feb. So far so good and I can live with this.
Used to drive my mom nuts on school days because I refused to eat any breakfast and she was one of those people who woke up hungry and had eggs and toast.

[AngryAmish]

13. I have not eaten breakfast since college.

I get drunk almost every day and would rather use the calories there than breakfast. I could be persuaded to eat one large meal in the afternoon but that is not socially acceptable.

[Odin2005]

16. I hate being badgered to eat breakfast because I usually have no appetite right when I get up.

I think there is way to much moralism involved in people's attitudes towards eating, those who do not conform to people's ideas about how one "should" eat are seen as somehow morally suspect.

[Arugula Latte]

19. I'm not a big breakfast person either, but here's something that I've been doing lately.

It saves time in the morning -- just scoop it into a bowl. Delicious and healthy.

The basic recipe is to combine equal parts (e.g. 1/2 cup each of) of oats, Greek Yogurt (I use vanilla flavored) and a liquid like milk/soy milk/almond milk/coconut milk, etc. Add a little of the sweetener of your choice, like honey, sugar, or maple syrup (which is what I like). Stir, cover, and put in the frig overnight. In the morning the oatmeal will be a good consistency. I also put in a tablespoon or two of chia seeds, which take on a nice tapioca-like texture by morning. I also like to put in vanilla extract, shredded coconut, and fruit (like frozen raspberries, which defrost overnight, or you can add fruit in the morning). I also add in almonds or walnuts for more protein. It's filling, delicious, nutritious, easy ... all that good stuff.