Breakfast is…

by Heidi on February 16, 2012

So recently hubs sent me an article about breakfast – about how apparently eating cake (or other such sweets for breakfast) is not as bad for you as people initially thought.

In the study, obese participants who ate a breakfast high in protein and carbohydrates that included a dessert were better able to stick to their diet and keep the pounds off longer than participants who ate a low-carb, low-calorie breakfast that did not include sweets.

The findings suggest that both meal timing and meal composition play a role in weight loss. Carbs and protein eaten at breakfast may keep us full throughout the day, plus allowing ourselves some sweets helps to stem cravings for these foods, said study researcher Dr. Daniela Jakubowicz, of Tel Aviv University in Israel.

Now here’s my ish with this. We all know that breakfast kick starts your metabolism in the morning and gives you the energy you need to get through the day. Some foods, are definitely better for you than others (especially those higher in protein) but noshing on cake at 7a? I mean, it’s probably up there with having Fruity Pebbles or other such sugarlicious cereals that we all loved as kids.

If you really must have a cakey type of food for breakfast? Check out this article on Health that has 7 healthy cakes to enjoy.

Personally, since I was a little girl I’ve always had breakfast be my favorite meal of the day – who doesn’t love cereal with marshmallows right?  These days I usually have a whole grain bagel or oatmeal or cereal that’s bran heavy. On the weekends after my runs, I’ll go get Naval Bagel – my order usually being something like a whole/6 grain bagel with eggs and vegetables (they have an amazing sandwich called the Vegetarian that’s a personal favorite). I’ve come a long way since the double serving of Lucky Charms (when you actually measure out a cup of cereal which is the case for most serving sizes you actually don’t get that much….).

The real point of this all is that like all meals, balance is key. What they’re saying with this article is that an unhealthy breakfast is better than no breakfast and that by starting our day with sweets we curb our cravings. Which, if you look at it that way, I definitely agree with but err on the side of caution.  Just be careful, with a diet like that you can not indeed have your cake (ah-hem) weight loss and eat it to. At least not every day (wink wink).

What are your favorite breakfast foods? 

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Tagged as: eats, food, healthy living, meals

  • http://twitter.com/littledanic littledanic

    I’m not sure that the article is saying that cake is better than nothing. My husband, who is in his first year of a graduate program in dietetics, has been talking about this theory since he took an eating disorders class in his undergrad nutrition program.  The theory is that with “dieting,” your focus is much of the time, spent on avoiding “bad” foods and only eating “good” foods. The problem with this is that most people “fall off the wagon” occasionally. When they do “fall off the wagon,” if they have been depriving themselves of certain “bad” foods, this is probably the first thing they are going to run right back to (the “bad” food). He has numerous studies that discuss dieting, and how most diets, over a long period of time,  don’t really work. His focus is on getting people to understand that the key to being “healthy” is to really pay attention to what you’re eating when you’re eating it (ie no eating in front of the TV, or eating while doing some other task). And to stop thinking of food in terms of black or white, bad or good. The idea here is that it’s ok to eat that cake in the am, if cake is something you typically deprive yourself of. After eating it, you won’t spend the rest of the day thinking about wanting the cake. Not saying I agree or disagree with him, but he was excited when this study came out. :)

  • http://msmarvelproject.wordpress.com/ Lisa

    I remember when I was a kid/teenager, I used to eat the most unhealthy breakfasts you could think of – cakes, donuts, etc. – things that should be classified as “desserts”.  I can’t imagine doing that now as an adult, and I think my childhood metabolism has my current metabolism beat by a mile so that may be why. But now, I much prefer eating something hearty, with protein, so that I’ll be full and have more energy.

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