A healthy breakfast refuels your body, jump-starts your day and benefits your overall health. As the name suggests, breakfast breaks the overnight fasting period. It replenishes your supply of glucose to boost your energy levels and mental alertness, while providing other essential nutrients required for the day.
A healthy breakfast should include high-fiber carbohydrates, protein and healthy fats. Carbohydrates are your body’s main energy source, but choosing ones high in fiber like fruits, vegetables, oatmeal, or whole-wheat toast, slows down the spike of blood sugar and release of insulin, which keeps you full and energized for hours. Protein and fat are also digested slowly and suppress hunger hormones, helping you stay full.
Importance of a Healthy Breakfast
Eating breakfast can improve energy and concentration levels. It also helps with better weight management, reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease in the long haul.
People who skip breakfast tend to overeat the rest of the time—and overeating results in unwanted weight gain, which can lead to high cholesterol and blood pressure issues. Studies have shown that breakfast eaters have lower incidences of heart disease compared to those who skip breakfast.
Healthy Breakfast Ideas
The most common excuse for skipping breakfast in Malaysia is “where got time-lah?” – so, to address this, we need to change our habits. Ideally, we tend to enjoy our breakfast time better if the meal we are having is easy-to-prepare or readily available at home.
Here are some simple and quick breakfast ideas to make your mornings better.
Thosai is a savoury thin pancake made with very little oil. Its main ingredients are rice and black gram, ground together in a fine, smooth batter with a dash of salt, then fermented. This dish is usually eaten with chutney and dhal. Having thosai for breakfast provides a healthy source of protein needed for the day.
Idli are healthy steamed rice cakes that are soft and spongy. The batter is made primarily of fermented black lentils and rice, and when poured into molds and steamed, it turns into small fluffy cakes. This breakfast dish is fat-free, saturated-fat-free, and cholesterol-free, allowing you to start your day off right.
Porridge can strengthen your immune system and help with digestion. Garnished with green spring onions, fried shallots, braised peanuts, this wonderful meal can be served with chicken, seafood, or just plain.
Oatmeal is the best breakfast choice for cereal lovers. Oats are rich in antioxidants. These antioxidants may benefit heart health and decrease blood pressure. To boost the protein content of an oatmeal breakfast, serve it with milk instead of water, topped with assorted berries and nuts.
And finally, eggs with toast are a popular breakfast option too. Two half-boiled eggs, with a dash of white pepper and soy sauce, coupled with a few slices of toast make up this simple but delicious dish. You can make this recipe healthier by using whole-grain toast instead of white bread.
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