Posted on 04/03/2019 5:55:41 AM PDT by Kaslin
I skipped breakfast again this morning. I won't worry about it.
Yes, I've heard the advice. "It's the most important meal of the day." It balances blood sugar levels, kick-starts your metabolism, stimulates the brain, etc.
A Harvard University study said men who regularly skip breakfast have a 27 percent higher risk of suffering a heart attack. 27 percent!
But I'm not worried, because I now know there's no proof that skipping breakfast causes heart attacks or any other problem.
In my latest video, nutritionist Dr. Ruth Kava points out that just about all the claims about breakfast being especially important are unproven.
Those Harvard researchers actually say it "remains unknown whether specific eating habits ... influence ... heart disease risk."
Strokes and heart attack news persists in part because people who skip breakfast tend to have other bad habits, like smoking.
But the breakfast bunk keeps coming.
Several years ago, the government announced that skipping breakfast may make you fat. Of course, the media jumped on that one. "Missing breakfast tricks your brain into thinking you want higher-calorie foods," says WebMD.
"Far from making you fat, breakfast actually helps activate your metabolism so you start burning fat," says StepToHealth.com.
But it's not true, shows a new analysis by the British Medical Journal.
"They looked on a number of different studies, and they did not find that eating breakfast ... helped people lose weight," says Kava.
The government has backed away from its claim.
Why did researchers and the government get it so wrong?
Partly because eating habits are hard to study. You can't follow test subjects for years, continuously controlling what they eat.
So, many studies are based on what people say they ate. Some people forget. Or lie.
Many of us have been suckered by studies funded by cereal makers. Five of 15 studies mentioned by the government in its breakfast push were funded by General Mills or Kellogg.
"Yeah, well, they're the ones that are interested in having their products sold," says Kava.
On its cereal boxes, Kellogg touted that study that found people who didn't eat breakfast could lose weight by starting to eat cereal or breads for breakfast instead of skipping breakfast altogether or eating meat and eggs.
"Don't get your nutrition education from cereal boxes," says Kava.
In fairness, cereal companies don't always try to spin the results. One study funded by Quaker Oats found skipping breakfast was associated with weight loss in people who were overweight. Instead of ignoring the result, Quaker Oats actively pushed the researchers to publish the data.
Even cereal boxes might be better sources of information than television, though.
"Sesame Street" is more reliable than most shows, but even there, Michelle Obama told Grover he was probably tired because he hadn't had a "healthy breakfast!"
While it's true that a hungry child may not do well in school, Obama tells Grover, "Everybody should have a healthy breakfast."
Not true. You need nourishment, but there's no good evidence it has to come at a specific time of day.
"Eat breakfast if you're hungry. If not, eat a little later," advises Kava.
Of course, the key to good health isn't just to do whatever you feel like doing. Our appetites can lead us astray. Smoking kills. Some tempting foods are unhealthy.
But years of consumer reporting have taught me that moderation and common sense are better guides than the hyped warnings from government and the media.
Thanks. That is one I have not seen!
This is becoming an issue for me. I’m sort of a “small time” Dave Clark. That is, ever since I moved to Kentucky, whenever someone finds out how old I am they are shocked. (I’m 65). Probably the biggest compliment was last week when I was introduced to one of my daughter’s friends at a hair solon and the girl found out how old I was, her comment was that I “MOVED” like a young man. :)
But that is why this stuff is important to me. I’m still living my life as though I was in my 30’s and seriously enjoying it. I don’t want to suddenly find myself to be an old man, and with a very short transition to it.
You can have one meal that lasts 8 hours. The University of Chicago has done some studies and they found out that what you eat is less important than the time you don’t eat. In other words, you can eat what you want 5 days a week as long as you go two days without eating (that’s 2 24 hour fasts). Or have a small omelette on the two fasting days.
By fasting two days you lose weight. Our blood sugar goes way down. Your blood pressure and cholesterol stabilize at healthy levels. So, your body actually needs that no food time to house clean. It actually helps fortify against cancer and heart attacks.
Not eating for a while tells your body to start eating things other than food. So it goes after stored fat. Then it goes after under-used or under-performing cells. Fasting is a natural cycle for the body. And we have been denying our bodies that part of the cycle ever sense refrigeration. Breakfast is a construct that began in the late 1800’s And gained steam with better food availability and storage. Much of the past we were eating two meals depending on weather.
An additional sponsor of our collective weight problem is the advent of indoor plumbing. Just think of the issues with cooking and relieving your self in the days before indoor plumbing. For most of America that began in the late 1800’s. Before then you were going to odd houses and using chamber pots. Baths were once a week and took an hour to prepare.
Our world is very new. And our living habits are new. Moderation and balance are ok diets if you eat every other day. But they are not natural at all. Your body is not used to finding carbs for three quarters of the year. Dairy and wheat are new introductions to our diet. They came about 5000 years go. And not all of us could easily eat them. Beef and fish once a day is more natural for most Caucasians.
My breakfast usually consists of coffee.
Then, soon after, coffee.
Not if you're diabetic. Then it's just a swan dive into the cesspool of sugar spikes and a day of testing and balancing.
I never eat breakfast except for the occasional 6 oz. glass of V8.
I’m 60 years old. I usually have Diet Mountain Dew for breakfast. I eat whatever I want whenever I want.
I can still fit into the same socks I wore when I was 16.
Unrelated but IMO eating dark meat causes digestion problems, constipation and hard dark stool that takes a long time to exit the system. Someone has a point about eating beef. A cow is slow and fat Rocky couldn’t catch the chicken.
Hah! That’s the important part. Socks are hard to size and find. I find the key is to never wash them (one always goes missing), and keep the bloodhounds away. For some reason the coonhounds leave socks alone, but the bloodhound eats em.
I usually skip breakfast unless it’s eggs benedict. Then all bets are off.
Welp, that’s it, I’m going to IHOP ... or maybe Cracker Barrel. Or did I miss the point somehow?
Yeah google the 5:2. My description was pretty simplistic. You end up losing about 1-2 lbs a week. It’s a good long term option.
Agreed. I eat under the keto guidelines. Feast on meat mostly, then no eating until the next meal. That is for me a 5 to 7 hour fast. Has worked for me so far, very well. Lost a lot of weight. Feel great. No more constipation, inflammation or other tummy issues.
I get to eat my very favorite thing and that is steaks, ribs, pork chops, etc. the keto docs I listen to (Ken Berry md, etc) also state breakfast claims are bunk.
Yeah. That’s pretty much the basis of the 5:2. It works.
I do the same.
Although I have a bit more coffee after that.
I saw a bumper sticker the other day that said “Donuts: The Other White Meat.”
Or maybe breakfast IS important.
I do not eat breakfast and my doc has voiced no concerns with it. It’s done to maintain weight. I might have an Adkins low carb bar, but nothing else. Lunch is soup and salad. The main meal is in the evening. If I go outside of this routine I gain weight non-stop. All of my vitals and lab tests are outstanding.
Eating like this shrinks a persons stomach, so when I want to pig out, I still can’t eat a whole lot.
A mile and half walk each day is also in the mix.
This breakfast thing is only for those that burn a lot of calories, other than that it’s hog wash.
I wouldn’t eat breakfast as a kid and still rarely do. Sometimes I only eat dinner and skip lunch too. I just don’t get hungry in the morning.
If you are involved in a fitness regimen, breakfast protein is ESSENTIAL.
If not, it’s just another meal and the more of those you skip the better.
Second reason: IT’S BACON !!!
The American Dietetic Association’s Evidence Analysis Library gives the following a recommendation for adult weight management (meaning practitioners should generally follow it but remain alert to new information and be sensitive to patient preferences):
Total caloric intake should be distributed throughout the day, with the consumption of 4 to 5 meals/snacks per day. Consumption of greater energy intake during the day may be preferable to evening consumption.
But this study doesn’t say you should eat a breakfast over other meals, just in addition to. And the magic of your entire calorie intake versus physical requirements is what determines your weight and conditioning without other over riding sources like disease or physical limitations. Eating a morning meal is a conditioning response, not life threatening. As long as you get your correct calories in and your physicality to balance it during the entire day, you’ll do fine for the weight loss part.
One way is the Harris Benedict Scale.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harris%E2%80%93Benedict_equation
And for others that wish to take it further, and have the time to do so, you may want to stat studying body composition. Body composition and growth are key components of health in both individuals and populations.
The ongoing epidemic of obesity in children and adults has highlighted the importance of understanding body fat levels for short-term and long-term health. However, other components of body composition also influence health outcomes, and its measurement is increasingly valuable in clinical practice. Lot of work here, but this is what builds the Lee Haneys, Arnies, Rachael MacLishes, or even the Chynas of the world. But it takes time and work most of us don’t have. And it can be expensive. So most people don’t take it that far. Good luck.
rwood
Are you my brother?
We both hate coffee but a morning hit of DMD gets the blood pumping.
I lost 50 pounds last Summer/Fall. Eating two small meals per day during the week then basically eating whatever I wanted during the weekends. Early meal around 10-11 after a good long walk (every day) or a workout on weight machines (every other day). Second meal between 5 and 7 PM. NOTHING in the Evening.
If I got a bit hungry between, I’d grab a few nuts, a turkey sausage stick (from Aldi) or a small hunk of cheese.
I also NEVER ate breakfast as a kid or young adult. Stayed in bed until the very last minute then dressed in a hurry and ran to catch the school bus.
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