Do You Skip Your Breakfast Regularly? Here's How It Impacts The Body

The longstanding belief that breakfast is essential for good health is deeply rooted in our culture. Conventional wisdom and nutrition guidelines frequently tout breakfast as the most important meal of the day, often linking it to better overall health and weight management. However, recent research challenges this notion, suggesting that skipping breakfast might not be detrimental after all.

Should you necessarily eat breakfast? 

The traditional argument in favour of breakfast points to observational studies indicating that breakfast eaters generally appear healthier. They are less likely to be overweight and tend to have a reduced risk of certain chronic diseases. These correlations have led to widespread recommendations promoting breakfast as a crucial meal.

However, it's important to recognise that these observational studies do not prove causality. While breakfast eaters do exhibit healthier profiles, this could also be attributed to their overall healthier lifestyles, which might include better dietary choices, more exercise, and fewer harmful habits like smoking and excessive drinking. This raises the question: Is breakfast itself beneficial, or is it simply a marker of a healthy lifestyle?

Further scrutiny through randomised controlled trials, which offer a higher standard of evidence, reveals that breakfast may not hold the sway we think it does over our metabolism or weight management. These studies show that the total daily calorie intake and overall eating habits are what truly matter, not necessarily whether one eats breakfast.

Moreover, the notion that breakfast kick-starts metabolism is a myth. Metabolic rate is influenced by the total amount of food consumed throughout the day rather than the timing of meals. Skipping breakfast does not inherently lead to weight gain; in fact, it could decrease overall calorie consumption. This is evident in studies where omitting breakfast did not lead to significant weight gain over time and sometimes resulted in reduced daily calorie intake.

Skipping breakfast also aligns with intermittent fasting schedules like the 16/8 method, which involves skipping the morning meal. Research supports that such routines can effectively decrease calorie intake and promote weight loss while improving metabolic health, as per a Healthline report. 

In summary, while skipping breakfast might go against traditional dietary advice, emerging evidence suggests it might not be as harmful as previously thought. As with any dietary advice, individual preferences and health goals should guide eating habits.