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Healthy Diet Plans >>  Healthy Breakfast >>  Breakfast Menu

Breakfast Menu


Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. You’ve probably heard this a million times, but in the daily rush to get to work and/or get the kids to school, it gets overlooked. Sure a bowl of cereal and milk is better than nothing, but if you plan things out in advance, it is not difficult to come up with a healthy breakfast menu so that you and your loved ones are well fortified with a solid meal under their belts before they head out to face the world.

Why are healthy breakfast choices important?

Assuming you ate three hours before you slept and then slept for seven hours, your body has been starving for the last ten hours. If you continue to go without eating, you are depriving your body of essential nutrition and impairing its capacity to work.

This is why it is so important to prepare a healthy breakfast menu and ensure that you stick to it. When going through different breakfast menu ideas, it is important to ensure that your first meal of the day consists of all the essential macronutrients required by your body. These include the following:

  • Proteins are the building blocks of all the muscle mass of your body. When your body is deprived of food (as it is during your night’s sleep), it begins to cannibalize muscle tissue for energy. This is why it is important to ensure that your breakfast menu recipes are rich in protein. Eggs are the best source of protein that you can find. Whether scrambled, poached, or boiled, they are the perfect breakfast menu items. Adults should aim to consume at least two eggs for breakfast. If you want to cut down on the calories, stick to egg whites only and avoid the yolk, although the yolk is highly nutritious. Other excellent sources of protein include fish, chicken, turkey, peanut butter, yogurt, soy, and milk.
  • Carbohydrates provide your body with energy. Your body needs energy to see it through the day, and if your breakfast menu recipes skip out on the carbs, you will be left feeling tired and lethargic all day. One of the best sources of carbs is whole wheat bread. This can be consumed with eggs as a part of a healthy breakfast menu. Wholegrain cereals are also good sources of carbohydrates. When choosing breakfast menu items that are rich in carbohydrates, it is important to choose high fiber carbohydrates that have a low glycemic index. This is why whole wheat bread is healthier than white bread and whole grain cereals are healthier than artificially sweetened ones. When you consume high fiber sources of carbohydrates, your body takes longer to digest them (as opposed to low fiber carbohydrates), so you feel full for longer. Carbohydrates with a high glycemic index cause a sudden spike in the energy levels of your body followed by a rapid slump.
  • As counter intuitive as it may sound, fats are also an essential part of any meal, including breakfast. The key to consuming fats is to consume the healthy fats in small quantities. For example, if you’re frying an egg, fry it in vegetable oil instead of butter. You can also opt for low fat milk with your whole wheat cereals.

In addition to these macronutrients, a healthy breakfast menu should also consist of micronutrients such as vitamins and minerals. These are best obtained by consuming fruit or drinking a glass of fresh fruit juice. Fruits are also a good source of fiber. Although fiber does not have any nutritional value by itself, it helps you to feel full for longer and also aids in the process of digestion. If you prefer to drink a glass of fruit juice, opt for fresh fruit juice that has not been artificially sweetened and still contains some fruit pulp. The best way to do so is to invest in a juicer and prepare fresh fruit juice at home.

Healthy Breakfast Menus

As you can see, it is fairly simple to ensure that you eat a healthy breakfast every day. Two eggs with two slices of whole wheat bread and a glass of juice are more than enough to meet your body’s requirements. If you’re pressed for time, a bowl of wholegrain cereals in milk with a bowl of fruit is another excellent option. Breakfast menu recipes do not have to be complicated in order to be healthy. Some other healthy breakfast meal ideas include protein shakes with chopped fruit; tasty tuna, chicken, or turkey sandwiches with lettuce, tomatoes, and whole wheat bread; omelets stuffed with fresh chopped vegetables; cooked oats in milk with slices of fruit; and a peanut butter sandwich in whole wheat bread washed down with a glass of fresh fruit juice. It does not have to be elaborate to be healthy. When it comes to breakfast, the most important thing is not to skip it. 

Submitted on January 16, 2014