We are often advised not to miss breakfast as it is the most important meal of the day. Everyone is familiar with the saying, ‘eat breakfast like a king’. In practice, how many of us adhere to this health advice? How many of us eat breakfast like a king? In the world, breakfast is the most skipped meal of the day. Regardless of consuming breakfast like a king, most people do not even bother to eat breakfast at least like a beggar.
Breaking fast
This may not be the first time that you hear or read about the importance of not skipping breakfast.People often disregard health advice and invite many non-communicable diseases. Research has found that eating breakfast lowers the risk of diabetes, blood pressure, and gastritis. Some people unwittingly skip breakfast to shed extra body fat. Nevertheless, studies reveal that the vice helps fight obesity. Having breakfast is linked toa lower risk of obesity contrary to the popular myth that skipping meals (breakfast) can help reduce body weight.
The body is in a kind of fasting state for about eight hours after a night’s sleep. Hence, this fast should be broken by eating and drinking healthy foods and drinks. That is the reason why the morning meal is known as ‘breakfast’. If one keeps fasting until noon, without breaking fast, the body reacts to this situation in a damaging manner. A person may feel less energetic to engage in his morning tasks if breakfast is skipped. A person who eats lunch around noon by skipping breakfast is in a state of fasting for about 12-14 hours. Hence, he lacks energy, becomes lethargic andis less active. He will find it difficult to remain physically as well as mentally active.
As per health experts, constant over-fasting without breaking the fast in the morning will later lead to a number of health problems such as a greater risk for developing diabetes and obesity.
A team of American researchers has found that women who often skipped breakfast increased the risk of developing diabetes by 28 percent in comparison to those women who daily consumed breakfast. They have also found that those who consumed breakfast cereals such as whole-grain cereals have recorded a significantly lower risk of developing diabetes. It has also been found in the research that those who eat breakfast daily, as a habit, had shown a lower risk for diabetes, obesity, and high blood pressure.
Heart diseases
A new study conducted by a team of scientists at Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) reported based on evidence that ‘’men who regularly skipped breakfast had a 27% higher risk of heart attack or death from coronary heart disease than those who did eat a morning meal. Non-breakfast-eaters were generally hungrier later in the day and ate more food at night, perhaps leading to metabolic changes and heart disease” The study was published in the American Heart Association (AHA) journal Circulation in July, 2013.
Junk food
A healthy breakfast does not constitute junk foods as most of the population is accustomed to consuming. Most Sri Lankans, including school-going children, are used to grab an oily, salty and starchy snacks that are also laden with artificial colours and preservatives that hardly contain vital nutrients, but disease-causing ingredients. Some people merely alleviate their hunger by putting something in their stomach in the morning so that they have the energy to function until the next meal.
Some have the habit of drinking a cup of tea or coffee (with added milk and sugar) as they woke up and do not eat any food until noon.
As per research, those who regularly skip breakfast or eat an unhealthy morsel of food in the morning, miss out on vital nutrients such as calcium, vitamins A,B1, B2, B3, C and D, fibre, folate and iron. Researchers have also found that those who skip breakfast generally eat low-quality diets during the day that contain high amounts of added sugars, starch and oil in comparison to those who take an effort to eat breakfast.
It is during breakfast that most people incorporate milk, cereals, fruits, egg and grains into their diet. As in Sri Lanka, people hardly eat boiled grains like mung bean, cowpea, and chickpeas for lunch or dinner but for breakfast. So, those who skip breakfast often miss out on vital nutrients from such foods.
Healthy breakfast
For Sri Lankans, a healthy breakfast is not a novel concept. Traditionally, Sri Lankans have been consuming healthy meals that provided them with essential nutrients. Traditional Sri Lankans consumed brown rice regularly, including in breakfast. Brown rice is a source of Vitamin B1 and B6, fibre and calcium. Brown rice is a whole grain cereal. Cooked brown rice and Pol Sambolaya (coconut salad) are included in the most traditional Sri Lankan breakfast diet, which provide vital nutrients as well as calories. Apart from Pol Sambolaya, curried vegetables, Dhal, fish, dried fish, Kiri Hodi (coconut milk curry) boiled or fried egg have been incorporated into the traditional breakfast of Sri Lankans. Apart from cooked brown rice, dishes made of ground brown rice such as hoppers, string hoppers, rice flour pancake (GediAppa) and pittu also are consumed as breakfast. Pol Sambolaya, vegetable or non-veg curries are often included as accompaniments to these main dishes.
In the southern part of the country, most people eat red rice, curd, and dry fish curry or Kiri Hodi as breakfast.
Diya Bath or fermented rice soup had been a popular breakfast of Sri Lankans which yield myriads of health benefits. As per Sri Lankan ethnomedical practitioners, Diyabath is said to cure gastritis. Research have found that fermented food provide the body with vital probiotics that assures gut health.
Protein-rich boiled legumes like chickpea, cowpea and Mung bean along with scraped coconut and LunuMiris (prepared using raw onions, chili, pepper and salt) are also popular breakfast dishes in Sri Lanka. Apart from that people also eat boiled yams such as sweet potatoes, cassava, purple yam for breakfast.
Kola Kenda or herb porridge is a popular Sri Lankan food drink consumed only during morning. Making Kola Kenda is easy with the use of modern electric appliances.
With urbanisation and societal transformation, many traditional Sri Lankan breakfast dishes have faded away. Today, most parents give their children store-bought junk food as breakfast. Mostly, bread or a snack made of refined flour with added salt, oil and sugar have become the regular breakfast for many. Since most parents are busy with work, preparation of a healthy breakfast is out of reach for them. Hence, they often find unhealthy alternatives for the most important meal of the day. They spend less time preparing breakfast or some people skip it not knowing the detrimental health consequences that action can yield.
Toasted wholegrain bread with omelet, a glass of milk, some fruits, a salad, a green smoothie, and Hummus can be incorporated as breakfast and they take little time to prepare. Such a healthy breakfast is ideal for those who do not want to spend a lot of time in the kitchen in the morning. While providing vital nutrients, they also fulfill the calorie requirement.
Most parents complain that their children do not like to eat breakfast prior to going to school. Some children who miss breakfast faint at school. It is the responsibility of the parent to make their children eat even a little amount of food in the morning prior to going to school. Breakfast also helps children remain physically as well as mentally active and learn better.
Dr. Naveen De Soysa, MBBS, MSc, MD (Community Medicine) is a Senior Registrar in Community Medicine. Panchamee Hewavissenti is a culinary researcher and recipe creator