Posted by kathryn in A Balanced Diet and Mental & emotional health

The most important meal of the day and still so many people forget it. Although eating breakfast might not be high on your list of priorities, it will make your brain work better.

The importance of breakfast

After sleeping through the night, your body has used up it’s easily accessible energy stores. If you don’t have breakfast your blood sugar levels drop and you’re more likely to experience a low mood, irritability and tiredness.

A number of studies show eating breakfast regularly improves both mood and memory. Breakfast eaters tend to be less stressed and feel calmer. Adults perform better in mental tasks, while children who eat breakfast perform better in school.

What to eat

A good breakfast doesn’t have to be complicated or take ages to prepare. For most people I recommend structuring your breakfast around these three groups:

• a low GI carbohydrate – like oats, muesli, multigrain or sourdough bread, fruit bread or muffins
• some protein – like eggs, cheese, hummous, soy milk, nuts, tinned fish, baked beans
• some fruit or vegetable

Sample breakfasts include:

• wholegrain toast with baked beans, followed by a mandarin
• porridge with banana, honey and a few almonds scattered on top
• poached eggs on toast with grilled tomato and mushrooms
• fruit English muffin spread with ricotta and fresh strawberries
• muesli with soy milk and tinned pears
• sourdough toast with mashed sardines and slices of tomato
• peach, walnut and ginger muffin and a small tub of yoghurt

So make breakfast a regular part of your routine. You’ll not only boost your energy levels, but also improve your mental health.

It’s Mental Health Week here at Limes & Lycopene and this post is part of a series: five food and diet strategies you can use to improve your mental health. The above image is the winner of the Mental Health Week art competition held in Victoria.

Technorati tags: “mental health week”, mental health week

10 October, 2007