Eat breakfast, lose weight

Find out why a morning meal helps you to maintain a healthy weight and get a nutritionist's five best breakfast suggestions.

By Dr. Joey Shulman

Do you remember when Mom told you breakfast was the most important meal of the day? She was right, of course! Medical research shows that skipping meals promotes -- rather than prevents -- weight gain.

A recent study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology concludes that skipping meals and eating less frequently may result in packing on extra pounds.

The study's findings showed that:
- People who ate four or more times a day were 45 per cent less likely to be obese than those who ate three times a day or less.
- Skipping breakfast links to a greater chance of obesity. People who skipped breakfast were more than four times more likely to be obese than those who ate breakfast daily.

How your metabolism works
Picture your metabolic rate shaped as an ice cream cone or an inverted pyramid. Starting at the top, it's at its highest in the morning and starts to decline on a gradual level as the day progresses.

Unfortunately, many of us have a backwards approach to eating when it comes to weight loss and meals. We skip breakfast for a variety of reasons such as lack of hunger, a busy schedule or to save on calories. While this seems to make sense with a "calories in, calories out" theory, research consistently demonstrates that skipping breakfast typically results in weight gain.

Another research study published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition showed that skipping meals and irregular meal patterns could decrease insulin sensitivity, thereby promoting weight gain and increasing cardiovascular risk factors. In a nutshell, eating erratically signals the body to burn calories slower and conserve fat.

Eat light, within 90 minutes of waking
To lose weight, you need to start your day off with a reasonable amount of food. At first, this suggestion may scare breakfast skippers who are not hungry in the morning or don't think they have time to eat. You don't have to eat immediately after rising out of bed, but you should try to eat your first meal within an hour to an hour and a half after waking for best weight loss results.

You also don't have to eat a huge meal at this time of day. A healthy and balanced breakfast of approximately 300 calories is all you need to spark your metabolic engine.

Healthy breakfast foods
Avoid refined flours and sugars in the early morning. These foods rank high on the glycemic index and make your blood sugar and insulin levels bounce around. Examples of high glycemic index breakfast items include white bagels, instant oatmeal, breakfast bars and muffins.

As a general rule, try to incorporate some protein and healthy fat into your breakfast to keep yourself satiated and blood sugar levels stable. Examples of healthy breakfast choices include:

- Protein smoothie
- Scrambled eggs (or egg substitute) with cheese
- A poached egg on whole grain bread
- Yogurt with fruit and nuts
- Protein powder mixed into slow-cooking oatmeal
- Toast with natural peanut butter

Healthy breakfast recipes
Below, you'll find my top five quick and easy breakfast choices to fill you up and trim your waistline. Bon appetite!

1. Blueberry yogurt crunch Calories = 290
• 1/2 cup of low fat yogurt
• 1/2 cup of mixed berries
• 2 tsp of walnuts sprinkled over top for extra crunch and omega 3 fats

2. Frozen strawberry banana smoothie Calories = 300
• 5 ounces of soy milk or 1% cow's milk
• 1/2 frozen banana and 1/2 cup of frozen strawberries
• 1 scoop of vanilla protein powder
• 1 tsp of flaxseed oil (to be kept in fridge)

3. Cottage cheese and fruit crunch Calories = 280
• 1/2 cup of 1% cottage cheese
• 1/2 cup of blueberries + 1 small banana sliced over top
• 1/2 cup of bran cereal

4. Cheesy eggs Calories = 290
• 1/2 cup of egg whites
• 1 large omega 3 egg
• 2 ounces of grated low-fat cheddar or Swiss cheese
• 1 slice of whole grain bread

5. Open-faced peanut butter & banana sandwich Calories = 249
• 1 slice of omega 3 whole grain bread
• 2 tsp. of natural peanut, almond or cashew butter
• Slices of bananas over top

Dr. Joey Shulman, DC, and registered nutritionist, is author of the national best seller The Last 15 -- A Weight Loss Breakthrough and president of Shulman Weight Loss Clinic. For more information or to book a free weight-loss assessment, visit www.drjoey.com.

Looking for more morning meal ideas? Check out 10 breakfast recipes to get your day off to a great start