Importance of Eating Your Breakfast

A healthy breakfast should have appropriate amounts of carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins and minerals, and some healthy fat too.

Pick out at least one food from each of these categories and you’ll never go wrong with your breakfast.

If you skip this meal, hunger pangs make you feels starved by noon, causing you to overeat at lunch, which in turn makes you sluggish, and pile on the calories.

A healthy breakfast improves concentration, provides energy, boosts your activity levels and helps in lowering cholesterol.

If you are out of time and effort, you may try these quick breakfast options:

* Suji idli with yoghurt

* Vegetable sandwich with boiled eggs

* Cheese toast with fruits

* Oatmeal with fruit and curd smoothie

* Cereal sprinkled with dry fruits, and a glass of orange juice.

* Toast with scrambled eggs and a fruit

* Crackers or toast with peanut butter

* Patties made from boiled beans and vegetables, and dry fruit milkshake.

* Dosa are idli All South-Indian items are high in proteins and fiber.

* Protein: Go for poultry, fish, peanut butter, eggs, poha, aiming for at least 5 grams protein content. An egg contains 6g of protein and 72 calories, and has been recommended by the Journal of American College of Nutrition as ideal food which makes one feel satisfied for long.

* Calcium: Include milk, cheese, paneer, curds, and fortified orange juice.

* Vitamins and minerals: Have fruits and vegetables. Fruits eaten raw are better than juices which take away the fiber content.

* Grains: Can be had as cereals, toast (brown bread), muffins, pancakes, muesli, oats, porridge, crackers, etc. A Harvard study shows that people who eat cereals for breakfast lose weight more consistently than those who don’t.

Your ideal cereal should have at least 5 grams of fiber.