Why breakfast is not so important after all

Research suggests that the theory that breakfast is the most important meal of the day may not be true.

The study, published in the British Medical Journal, found that those who eat a breakfast consume many more calories than those who skip the meal – and end up weighing more.

For decades, health experts have urged people not to miss breakfast, warning that those trying to reduce their weight by missing a meal will simply end up nibbling later. But the new study, led by Australian researchers, found that those who skipped breakfast consumed an average of 260 fewer calories a day.

Previous studies have suggested that breakfast stimulates metabolism and can help dieters stop overeating later in the day. The NHS council warns: "Some people skip breakfast because they think it will help them lose weight.In fact, research has shown that people who eat breakfast regularly are less likely to eat breakfast. to be overweight. "

However, the new study found that those who skipped breakfast did not make up for it by eating later in the day and that there was no significant difference in metabolic rates between breakfast eaters and captains.

Experts from Monash University, Australia, examined 13 randomized controlled trials of breakfast and weight in high-income countries, including the United Kingdom.

Most studies followed participants for less than a month. On average, those who skipped breakfast have a lighter pound than those who did not.

The researchers wrote: "This study suggests that adding breakfast may not be a good strategy for weight loss, regardless of the usual breakfast habits. to recommend breakfast to lose weight in adults, as this could have the opposite effect. "

However, they said that breakfast could have other important effects, such as improving the concentration and attention of children.

Tim Spector, a professor of genetic epidemiology at King's College London, said the breakfast mantra being the most important meal of the day had been rooted in most people as early as the day before. childhood and reinforced by campaigns such as "go to work on an egg". But he said the findings suggested it was "just another myth of the scheme".

"Many think that British frying is the country's main contribution to world cuisine," he said. "We are told that breakfast helps our metabolism and that skipping it will make us much more hungry, so we're going to eat too much.

"Reasonable evidence now suggests that skipping breakfast may actually be a useful strategy for reducing weight."

The Daily Telegraph UK