We have grown up listening to the fact that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and for good reason. It revitalizes the body and mind, boosts metabolism, and helps you stay juiced up throughout the day. Breakfast replenishes your supply of glucose to increase your energy levels and attentiveness, while also providing other essential nutrients required for good health.
Doctors in UAE recently warned of the risks associated with skipping breakfast, especially in children. According to new reports, psychosocial and behavioral problems may be more prevalent in children who do not eat breakfast properly, they warned.
Arfa Banu Khan, a clinical psychologist at Aster Clinic, Bur Dubai, said that she has treated numerous cases of children with behavioral issues because they had poor sleeping and eating habits. She revealed that “most of them usually skipped or postponed breakfast and had it together as ‘brunch’ — clubbing of breakfast and lunch together”.
Khan stressed that missing breakfast could mean depriving the body of the vital nutrients that supply energy to both the body and the brain. Note that this concern was highlighted in a recent study published in the journal Frontiers in Nutrition.
“It is important that we have a balanced, nutrient-rich, energy-supplying breakfast. The study clearly emphasizes this. It found that among people who ate breakfast, the ones who had nutrient-deficient are likely to experience behavioral issues,” she elaborated.
Furthermore, a healthy breakfast reduces the risk of illness. Compared with people who do not have breakfast, those who regularly have the first meal of the day tend to have a lower risk of both obesity and type 2 diabetes. There is also some evidence that people who forego it may be at a higher risk of cardiovascular diseases.
Children who eat breakfast tend to eat healthier overall and are more likely to be physically active.
Skipping breakfast can make them feel tired, restless, or irritable. Their bodies need to refuel for the day ahead in the morning, and their moods, energy, and health can decline by mid-morning if they do not eat something for breakfast.
Breakfast helps keep kids’ energy in check and kickstarts the body’s metabolism to generate the fuel that helps children remain active and healthy. Additionally, it is essential that they have balanced and nutrient-rich breakfasts rather than just any kind of food.
