How Can Breakfast Help in Providing Good Nutrition?

Breakfast means ‘break the fast’, as the previous meal is typically 8–10 hours before waking up in the morning. Breakfast is important in re-fuelling the body with energy and nutrients, kick-starting the day. Many dietary guidelines recommend to consume a nutrient dense breakfast daily (18,19). In addition, it is generally recommended by several dietary guidelines that 15 to 25 percent of the recommended daily requirement for nutrient (vitamins and minerals) and energy should come from breakfast. 

The consumption of breakfast is associated with healthier daily nutrient intake in all age groups, especially in children and adolescents as an individual is more likely to consume the recommended daily nutrients unlike when breakfast is skipped (20,21,22). For example, a study reported that children who skipped breakfast did not meet two thirds of the recommended daily allowances (RDA; 40-60%) compared with those who consumed breakfast at school (<5-30%) or at home (<5-58%). Cross-sectional data has shown that children and adolescents who consume breakfast, such as, enriched grains and bread, eggs, milk etc. have better macro and micro-nutrient intakes, that is, they are more likely to meet the recommended intake (23,24). Several studies have reported that breakfast consumers had higher intakes of vitamins A, E, C, B-6, and B-12; folate; iron; calcium; phosphorus; magnesium; potassium; and dietary fibre (25,20,26). Cross-sectional data in children shows that the lower micronutrient intake due to breakfast skipping may not be compensated by other meals during the day (20,27). Several observational studies in children and adolescents have suggested that consuming unhealthy snacks instead of breakfast or consuming an unhealthy breakfast may be a contributing factor to unhealthy nutrient profile such as higher intakes of saturated fats, trans fats and sugars (20,26,28).