Importance of Consuming a Healthy Breakfast

Eating a healthy breakfast is the best way to start your day as it is a great opportunity to consume nutritious foods that provide your body with energy, protein and essential vitamins and minerals first thing in the morning.

Benefits

• Provides energy for the body and brain at the beginning of the day. Breakfast refuels the body with energy and replenishes blood glucose levels that went down in the night.

• Leads to better concentration, attention span and problem-solving ability.

• Helps in weight management, because often skipping a meal leads to overeating at the next meal.

• Boosts metabolism.

Healthy Breakfast Ideas

• Consume vegetables, e.g., tomatoes or mushrooms, legumes, baked beans, to increase the vitamins, minerals and fiber contents of your breakfast.

• Choose whole grain cereal with low-fat or nonfat milk topped with fruit.

• Make a fat-free yogurt, fruit and bran (one teaspoon) as a breakfast smoothie.

• Eat a vegetable omelet with whole-wheat bread as a side and a small cup of juice.

• Have half a cup of foul (fava bean) without adding oil and eat with a piece of whole-wheat Arabic bread.

• Have fat-free cheese with vegetables on whole-wheat bread as a breakfast sandwich.

Healthy breakfast meals typically consist of: Low-fat or non-fat milk, whole grains or unsweetened cereals, fresh fruits or unsweetened juices, vegetables and low-fat protein (low-fat cheese, hard-boiled egg or egg omelet) and green tea.

Consume limited amounts of the following foods at breakfast as they do NOT support your health and well-being: sweetened juices, fatty and sugary pastries, white bread and refined cereals, a lot of jam or honey and sausages.