The Great Breakfast Debate: Is Breakfast Really the Most Important Meal of the Day?
"The most important meal of the day is breakfast." This is something you have definitely heard throughout your life from your parents, the advertisements for your favorite cereals, and even on the cover pages of magazines.
But is breakfast really the most important meal of the day, or is it just one of those health claims repeated so often that people accept them as fact? Over the past ten years, several research groups have tried to uncover the truth behind this slogan.
Where Did the Most Important Meal Idea Come From?
The origin of the phrase is obscure, but nutritionists generally agree that it rose to prominence through the use of breakfast advertisements by cereal companies in the 20th century, along with early nutritional advice that eating breakfast breaks one’s fast and helps one burn fat.
This view was bolstered for years by studies of a purely observational nature, studies where it was observed that people who had breakfast were thinner and healthier than those who did not have breakfast. This is because there are several factors common among people who regularly eat breakfast, such as exercising, sleeping well, drinking less alcohol, and eating more fiber, any of which could have brought about the difference.
Controlled experiments were necessary to determine whether the actual consumption of breakfast caused these benefits. Several groups of researchers have conducted just such a study.
What the Randomized Trials Actually Found
The Bath Breakfast Project
The research that proved to be the most influential came from the Department of Health of the University of Bath. In this randomized controlled trial led by Dr. James Betts, lean individuals aged 21 to 60 were assigned either to consume at least 700 kcal before 11 a.m. or not to have breakfast but rather fast until noon during six weeks 2 3.
In the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, the researchers challenged the very foundation of the "most important meal". Dr. Betts et al. could not observe any difference in the rate of resting metabolism of individuals who ate breakfast and those who did not after six weeks of the research. Moreover, it was noted that fasting individuals compensated for missed breakfasts by overeating later during the day; indeed, those who did not have breakfast had approximately 20% lower energy intake throughout the day 2.
Individuals consuming breakfasts were more active during the day, spent additional calories on physical activity, and had slightly better blood sugar levels at the end of the experiment. However, the researchers failed to prove the importance of breakfast for metabolic processes. As Dr. Betts said, the belief about
The BMJ Review: Unscrambling the Evidence for Breakfast
The second key piece of evidence was provided by Katherine Sievert and Professor Flavia Cicuttini of Monash University, who, in 2019, headed a systematic review and meta-analysis of 13 randomized controlled trials conducted over almost three decades in the US, the UK, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan and published in The BMJ 1.
The results of this systematic review did not conform to the prevailing story. People in the group of those who ate breakfast had, on average, 260 more calories daily than those who did not eat breakfast, and those who did not eat breakfast were, on average, slightly lighter at the end of the trial period than those who ate breakfast 1. It should be mentioned that Professor Cicuttini specifically emphasized that the purpose of this research was not to make people stop having breakfast, but to prove wrong the particular myth of the unique importance of breakfast for controlling one's body weight. As Professor Cicuttini said, the myth of the most crucial role of breakfast in controlling one's body weight "is not correct" for everyone, though it is true for some people 5.
The University of Alabama at Birmingham Findings
Concurrently, scientists at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, such as obesity scientist Emily Dhurandhar, have investigated the particular role of breakfast in weight loss, and they found no significant link between having breakfast and losing weight. As Dhurandhar noted the new picture rather bluntly, breakfast is likely to be "just another meal" 4.
So Is There Any Evidence Breakfast Helps?
It wouldn't be fair to suggest that all the science is unequivocal on the issue. Some findings have thrown a spanner in the works:
Observational studies, which include cohort studies conducted by researchers connected with Harvard University, have found that eating breakfast regularly may be correlated with a marginally increased risk of having cardiovascular problems over time but, once again, correlation does not imply causation here.
In the Bath study, it turned out that those who ate breakfast were physically more active and had slightly better glucose tolerance after meals 2.
Some people with diabetes or certain metabolic diseases may benefit from a more predictable meal schedule, including breakfast, as a part of their treatment, a completely different issue from whether breakfast is crucial for a healthy individual.
The take-home message of science, in all honesty, is that breakfast is neither bad nor crucial for healthy individuals but may provide marginal advantages with regard to activity and glucose metabolism. The suggestion that without breakfast your metabolism is doomed is not based on the most solid science: randomized controlled trials.
Myth vs. Fact: Quick Breakdown
Myth: Skipping breakfast slows your metabolism. Fact: The Bath Breakfast Project found no measurable difference in resting metabolic rate between breakfast-eaters and breakfast-skippers after six weeks 2 3.
Myth: If you skip breakfast, you'll overeat later in the day. Fact: Multiple trials found the opposite: people who skipped breakfast generally ate less overall, not more 1 2.
Myth: Eating breakfast is necessary for weight loss. Fact: The 2019 BMJ meta-analysis found breakfast-eaters consumed more total daily calories and were not lighter than breakfast-skippers 1.
Myth: Everyone needs breakfast to function well. Fact: Individual response varies significantly; some people feel and perform better after eating in the morning, while others genuinely don't need it4 5.
So Should You Eat Breakfast or Not?
According to all the research available now, the right answer would be: it all depends on you. Some key takeaways:
Eat breakfast when you're hungry. The absence of any risks of harm from consuming breakfast when you're hungry suggests that it could help stabilize your energy levels and blood glucose through the morning.
No need to eat breakfast when you're not hungry. Research shows that not having breakfast won't affect your metabolism or make you eat too much during other meals in a day.
It's what you're eating that matters. Breakfast high in refined carbs and sugar wouldn't provide the same effects as a meal rich in protein, fiber, and healthy fats.
Be consistent if you have some specific health concerns. People dealing with diabetes and other health problems would have to adhere to their doctor's recommendations rather than rely on scientific studies conducted on healthy people.
Don't make false correlations. "Eating breakfast equals being healthier" is an example of such a mistake.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q1: Is breakfast really the most important meal of the day?
But not always, certainly not. Randomized controlled trials, such as the Bath Breakfast Project at the University of Bath and a 2019 BMJ meta-analysis by Monash University scientists, have not found strong evidence for breakfast's unique importance regarding metabolism or weight management.
Q2: Does skipping breakfast slow down your metabolism?
No. According to the Bath Breakfast Project, there is no observable difference in resting metabolic rate between those who eat their breakfast and those who fast until noon for six weeks.
Q3: Will skipping breakfast make you overeat later in the day?
The truth is quite the opposite. People who skipped breakfast ate fewer total calories in the course of the day in both the Bath experiment and the BMJ meta-analysis study.
Q4: Does eating breakfast help with weight loss?
Not based on the strongest scientific evidence that has been produced. The 2019 BMJ study discovered that people who ate breakfast were consuming 260 calories more each day compared to people who didn’t eat breakfast.
Q5: Are there any real benefits to eating breakfast?
Not grounded in the strongest science that has been created yet. According to research in the BMJ journal conducted in 2019, individuals eating breakfast consumed 260 calories per day more than those who did not eat breakfast.
Q6: So should I eat breakfast or not?
It all depends on you. For those who are hungry in the morning, having breakfast won’t do any harm and will help maintain energy and balance blood sugar levels. Those who aren’t hungry, however, do not seem to suffer from the negative effects of missing a meal. It’s more important to keep the daily diet healthy in general.
Key Points
Therefore, is breakfast truly the most important meal of the day for all people? The scientific literature suggests otherwise, at least based on randomized controlled trials conducted by researchers from the University of Bath and the 2019 meta-analysis in the British Medical Journal performed by Monash University researchers 1 2.
This does not suggest, however, that breakfast is harmful. Rather, the most important thing about a meal is not necessarily what it is but how consistently nutritious one eats throughout the day. Therefore, if eating breakfast benefits one's nutrition routine, then one should eat it. If it does not benefit one, however, the scientific research does not indicate that it harms one's health.
References
[1] Sievert, K., Hussain, S. M., Page, M. J., Wang, Y., Hughes, H. J., Malek, M., & Cicuttini, F. M. (2019). Effect of breakfast on weight and energy intake: systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. The BMJ, 364, l42. Summarized via Monash University Lens: https://lens.monash.edu/2019/02/08/1370836/breakfast-the-most-important-meal-of-the-day-right-wrong
[2] Betts, J. A., Thompson, D., et al. Bath Breakfast Project, University of Bath, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition: https://www.bath.ac.uk/news/2014/06/05/bath-breakfast-study/
[3] Chowdhury, E., & Betts, J. (2018). Postprandial metabolism and appetite do not differ between lean adults who eat breakfast or morning fast for 6 weeks. University of Bath Research Data Archive: https://researchdata.bath.ac.uk/449
[4] Dhurandhar, E. (University of Alabama at Birmingham) — commentary on breakfast and weight loss, cited via Scripps News: https://scrippsnews.com/world/breakfast-might-not-be-the-most-important-meal-of-the-day
[5] Cicuttini, F. (Monash University School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine) — commentary on the BMJ breakfast review: https://lens.monash.edu/@medicine-health/2019/02/08/1370836/breakfast-the-most-important-meal-of-the-day-right-wrong
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