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Take Five For The Benefits Of Breakfast

What are the benefits of eating a nutritious breakfast each day? Let us count five ways!

  1. Breakfast = good nutrition for everyone. Kids who eat breakfast get more fiber, calcium, vitamin A, vitamin C, riboflavin, zinc, and iron compared to breakfast skippers.1 Grown-ups who eat breakfast also get more of these nutrients, and eat fewer calories and less fat and cholesterol than those who don't.2
    • Skippers take note! You may not make up for nutrients missed at breakfast later in the day!1,3,4
  2. Breakfast can help you fiber up. Fiber helps promote good digestive health (among other benefits), but nine out of 10 people don't get enough fiber.5 The daily fiber recommendation is 25 grams for many women and 38 grams for many men.6
    • Tip: Flip for fiber! Breakfast on a cereal that's a good source of fiber (at least 3 grams, or 10% Daily Value per serving) or an excellent source of fiber (at least 5 grams, or 20% Daily Value per serving). Simply flip the package to read the Nutrition Facts panel and check how much fiber a serving provides.
    • Want more facts about the fabulousness of fiber? Find them in our FIBER-pe-dia.
  3. Breakfast fuels kids for school. Kids who skip breakfast may feel tired and hungry, which could make it harder to concentrate.1

    Check out the Keep Kids On Board With Breakfast! section to learn more.
    • Give little ones a big send off! Offer a quick and nutritious breakfast they'll love like their favorite Kellogg's® cereal topped with sliced fruit and fat-free milk.
  4. Breakfast is figure-friendly.* If you skip breakfast to manage your weight, you're in for a surprise. Regular breakfast-eaters tend to have healthier body weights than breakfast skippers.7,8,9 Breakfast eaters are more physically active than skippers, too.10
    • Start the day with cereal! Eating cereal as part of a nutritious breakfast may help promote a healthy weight in adults and kids.8,9,11,12
  5. Breakfast may benefit heart health. Adults and kids who skip breakfast have higher blood cholesterol levels than breakfast-eaters—especially breakfast-eaters who include cereal.13,14
    • Don't skip a beat! Make time for breakfast by setting out cereal boxes, bowls and utensils the night before.

Do morning obstacles make you miss the benefits of breakfast? Check out our Breakfast—Solved! section for easy solutions to common breakfast dilemmas.

* Research shows that people who eat breakfast regularly are leaner than people who skip breakfast. Many factors affect weight management. Diet and exercise are part of an overall healthy lifestyle.

References:
1. Rampersaud GC, Pereira MA, Girard BL, Adams J, Metzl JD. Breakfast habits, nutritional status, body weight, and academic performance in children and adolescents. J Am Diet Assoc. 2005;105:743-760.
2. Timlin MT, Pereira MA. Breakfast frequency and quality in the etiology of adult obesity and chronic diseases. Nutr Rev. 2007;65:268-281.
3. Morgan KJ , Zabik ME , Stampley GL . The role of breakfast in diet adequacy of the US adult population. J Am Coll Nutr. 1986;5:551-563.
4. Nicklas TA, Myers L, Reger C, Beech B, Berenson G. Impact of breakfast consumption on nutritional adequacy of the diets of young adults in Bogalusa, Louisiana: ethnic and gender contrasts. J Am Diet Assoc. 1998;98:1432-1438.
5. Mosfegh A, Goldman J, Cleveland L. 2005. What We Eat in America, NHANES 2001-2002. Usual Nutrient Intake from Foods as Compared to Dietary Reference Intakes. US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service.
6. Institute of Medicine (2005) Dietary Reference Intakes for Energy, Carbohydrate, Fiber, Fat, Fatty Acids, Cholesterol, Protein and Amino Acids (macronutrients). National Academies Press.
7. Ma Y, Bertone ER, Stanek EJ 3rd, Reed GW, Hebert JR, Cohen NL, Merriam PA, Ockene IS. Association between eating patterns and obesity in a free-living US adult population. Am J Epidemiol. 2003;158:85-92.
8. Cho S, Dietrich M, Brown CJ, Clark CA, Block G. The effect of breakfast type on total daily energy intake and Body Mass Index: Results from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III). J Am Coll Nutr. 2003;22:296-302.
9. Song WO, Chun OK, Obayashi S, Cho S. Is consumption of breakfast associated with body mass index in US adults? J Am Diet Assoc. 2005;105:1373-1382.
10. Keski-Rahkonen A, Kaprio J, Rissanen A, Virkkunen M, Rose RJ. Breakfast skipping and health-compromising behaviors in adolescents and adults. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2003;57:842-53.
11. Barton BA, Eldridge AL, Thompson D, Affenito SG, Striegel-Moore RH, Franko DL, Albertson AM, Crockett SJ. The relationship of breakfast and cereal consumption to nutrient intake and body mass index: The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Growth and Health Study. J Am Diet Assoc. 2005;105:1383-1389.
12. Albertson AM, Anderson H, Crockett SJ, Goebel MT. Ready-to-eat cereal consumption: Its relationship with BMI and nutrient intake of children aged 4 to 12 years. J Am Diet Assoc. 2003;103:1613-1619.
13. Resnicow K. The relationship between breakfast habits and plasma cholesterol in schoolchildren. J Sch Health. 1991;61:81-85.
14. Stanton JL, Keast DR. Serum cholesterol, fat intake, and breakfast consumption in the United States adult population. J Am Coll Nutr. 1989;8:567-572.