Breakfast: How healthy is YOURS?
Studies show that breakfast really is the most important meal of the day
The adage to ‘ Breakfast like a King’ has more than a ring of truth to it. Increasingly, studies show that it really is the most important meal of the day.
Indeed, people who eat breakfast have been shown to be slimmer than those who don’t; they also perform better in tests of mental agility.
But that doesn’t mean breakfast by its very nature is healthy. In fact, some of our popular choices are so high in sugar, salt and fat that they can significantly raise the risk of obesity and diabetes if eaten on a regular basis.
Just last week, researchers at the Harvard School of Public health revealed that eating two rashers of bacon a day can raise your risk of heart disease by over 40 per cent.
Not all cereals are healthier choices, either. Many contain 0.5g or more of salt per serving, and more sugar than a piece of chocolate cake.
So how do you know if your breakfast choice is filling you with energy and nutrients, or empty calories?
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Here, with the help of dietician Angela Tella, we assess some of the most popular choices, looking at the main nutrients they provide, as well as their fat, salt, sugar and calorie content.
(With cereals, assume a serving of semi-skimmed milk. As a guideline, adults are meant to have no more than 6g a day of salt; 20g of saturated fat for women (30g for men); 50g of added sugar for women (65g for men).