?Eating breakfast is important in health and in weight management.? ?Eating breakfast is overrated and adds more calories to your day, promoting weight gain.? Ugh. As in so many areas of health & nutrition, confusion reigns.
A client and colleague of mine recently forwarded me this interesting article, asking for my thoughts. As is often the case, my blog posts are the result of frequently asked client questions or of themes that I see in mainstream health that need some examination. So, what on earth is the scoop on breakfast?!?
Out of the gate, I love the last lines of this article: ?Just like bakers bake bread, scientists write papers and we get rewarded for writing and publishing papers.? Yes, a scientist can run a poorly architected test or series of tests, write a paper, and suddenly it?s in the news and people are saying ?Woah! This scientist said in this well-known newspaper that XYZ is bad for me.? Um. Who is the scientist? With whom or with what company or industry is he/she affiliated? How long was the test? What was the test sample like? How many people, in what health, were in the sample? What nuances were accounted for? How were the stats analyzed? Etc Etc
For instance, in this article, I am wondering WHAT the ?test subjects? were eating for breakfast in various studies. Were they eating whatever they wanted? Because this makes a HUGE difference! Huge. An egg scramble with spinach and mushrooms is an entirely different metabolic setpoint, and blood sugar regulation effector, than a bagel.
I am also wondering how many people were in the studies. 70% of 10 people is much less indicative than 70% of 10,000 people. What kind of health were they in to start with? The body?s ability to lose or gain weight is significantly influenced by things like hormone status, belief systems, and toxic load.
Bakers bake bread and scientists write papers. Here?s what you need to know. First, we are all bio-individual. I have found, in my practice, that most folks do best with a good breakfast. Both from a health perspective and from a weight-loss perspective. There are exceptions to that, certainly. But the bottom line is that you?ve usually been fasting all night and your blood sugar is low upon waking. Which means you need to eat, and preferably something nutrient-dense.
Second, as alluded to earlier (well?I don?t really allude much, to be honest. I?m more of a passionately-shout-about-it kind of gal. Anyhoo.), WHAT you are eating for breakfast matters a LOT. Blueberry muffin and orange juice?…not a great take. An apple with some nut butter?…great take! Starting your day with clean protein, healthy fats, and smart carbs, in the form of nutrient-dense choices, makes your metabolism and blood sugar-handling systems happy. It gives your 60-90 trillions cells some energy substrate and a bunch of vitamins and minerals to start the day.
Third, nutritionism really gets on my nerves and it confuses people (which also gets on my nerves). Nutritionism is the ad nauseum study all of these microscopic aspects of every single little thing (because bakers bake bread and scientists write papers) regarding food & health. ?Does Vitamin A intake contribute to lung cancer?? Seriously?!?! THAT is what we?re spending our time and money studying? A nutrient, in its natural form required by the body, does not lead to disease. Period. But we spend scads of money conducting whether ridiculous amounts of one nutrient, in its synthetic form, contributes to one type of cancer. And, depending on how studies are set up, you can come out with two completely different answers. Annoying & confusing. Who likes annoying & confusing? Not us. So let?s KISS (keep it simple, sweetheart).
Want to lose weight or maintain your ideal weight? For most of you, most of the time, that means?
Eat a good breakfast. Eat every 3-5 hours. Eat when you?re hungry and stop when you?re not hungry any more. Eat nutrient-dense foods that count, instead of empty calories that pack fat on your body and leave your nutrient-starved cells shouting for more. Eat plenty of veggies. Drink 10-15 cups of water. Manage your stress and be kind to yourself. Move your body. There it is for you, in a nutshell. The foundations to Create Vibrant Health? for yourself.
Bakers bake bread. Scientists write papers. Nutritionists promote health-building lifestyle choices. Go figure.
The food you eat builds your body, every day, for better or for worse. Make choices for health!
With love & morning joy,
Laurie
0 Comments