{"id":101486,"date":"2025-03-17T05:00:18","date_gmt":"2025-03-17T05:00:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/test10.co.za\/C\/?p=101486"},"modified":"2025-03-17T08:49:35","modified_gmt":"2025-03-17T08:49:35","slug":"is-breakfast-the-most-important-meal-of-the-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/test10.co.za\/C\/is-breakfast-the-most-important-meal-of-the-day\/","title":{"rendered":"Is Breakfast Still the Most Important Meal of the Day?"},"content":{"rendered":"

In a world where intermittent fasting<\/a>, health trends<\/a> and diet culture<\/a> are ever-growing, is breakfast still the most important meal of the day?<\/p>\n

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The adage \u201cbreakfast is the most important meal of the day\u201d took off when nutritionist, Adelle Davis, offered a comment in 1960, on how to keep healthy and avoid obesity. She responded, \u201cOne should eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a pauper.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The phrase has since been preached by parents, doctors and cereal brands across the globe \u2013 but is this a wasted notion when eating breakfast has become phased out of diets due to intermittent fasting and lack of appetite?<\/p>\n

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Why Are People Skipping Breakfast?<\/h3>\n

Before the Western radicalisation of intermittent fasting<\/a>, it was believed that the healthiest way to go about your day was to eat three meals a day \u2013 no more, no less.<\/p>\n

Skipping breakfast, or any meal for that matter, was as taboo as skipping leg day at the gym is today. Back then, the standard diet narrowly fitted a \u2018pyramid scheme\u2019, but the idea of what constitutes a so-called ‘healthy’ diet has changed. The number of diets available has tipped the scales and the latest one, intermittent fasting, is top of the leaderboard. Forget about sugar-coated cereal, yesterday\u2019s overnight oats is today\u2019s quinoa bowl. The only saving grace in a calorie-obsessed world is all-day breakfast menus with cryptic codes \u2013 \u2018Did you want the GF<\/a>, DF<\/a>, EF<\/a>, SF<\/a> or V<\/a> pancakes?\u2019 your waiter asks.<\/p>\n

As an advocate for breakfast foods, I can\u2019t say I\u2019ll give up my bacon and beans any time soon, but we can\u2019t deny that intermittent fasting has become a popular lifestyle choice for many.<\/p>\n

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The Benefits of Intermittent Fasting<\/h3>\n

Intermittent fasting is a dietary pattern that involves caloric restriction by limiting food consumption to certain intervals of the day. The fasting period can last approximately 16 hours, leaving an 8-hour window for eating; some people may prefer the 14\/10 eating schedule. There\u2019s also the 5:2 approach, which involves fasting for two consecutive or alternate days per week. It\u2019s also usually coupled with keto, Banting or flexitarian diets and exercise regimens. Read all about whether intermittent fasting is really worth the hype<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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While intermittent fasting is flexible and can be customised to fit dietary needs, people typically fast during the morning. But is intermittent fasting worth ditching breakfast? Plus, isn\u2019t it \u2018bad\u2019 to skip breakfast?<\/p>\n

The body needs a certain amount of energy for daily functioning; this is achieved by burning glucose from carbohydrates. When the body is subjected to fasting or restricted caloric intake, it burns fat instead. For this reason, intermittent fasting is a popular weight loss approach, but it also has other supposed benefits:<\/p>\n