February 2021

Is Eating Breakfast Necessary to Lose Weight?

There is a lot of speculation about the importance of breakfast as the source of the energy you need to start the day off on the right foot.

In the 80’s and 90’s we were told to eat 3 main meals and 2-3 low-fat snacks to “keep our metabolism firing” the new Millennium has brought about a whole new range of “how should we eat” guidelines!

Keto, intermittent fast, Fasting Mimicking, High protein low carb, are all on the table now. And all serve their purpose - but can also lead to more - CONFUSION!!

Breakfast YES or Breakfast NO?

There is evidence to show that breakfast skippers tend to weigh more than breakfast eaters. However, this is probably because people who eat breakfast are, on average, more likely to have other healthy lifestyle habits.  


From a nutritional medicine perspective, if the thought of breakfast is met with dread because you just can't stomach food that early, or are totally not hungry, we look to your digestive health and your elimination times.  Sluggish digestion, low levels of enzymes and gastric juices and poor microbiome (good gut bacteria) all lead to poor feelings of appetite and should be considered if you are not really feeling like eating.


This can all be turned around with lots of love for your gut health (think fibre, water, plants, even fermented foods like Kimchi, Yoghurt, SauerKraut) 

So what is the takeaway here?


Work out what your body wants - I would suggest a rounded breakfast to make sure you are not crashing in the mid-morning and reaching for the snack machine at work. 

Eat when you're hungry, stop when you're full. Eat a protein-rich breakfast for the benefit of regulating your energy levels, cognition motivation, and mood - but don't expect it to have a major effect on your weight loss.  

Jacqui Lewis


BHSc Nutritional and Dietetic Medicine

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