Breakfast determines your energy level for the entire day, but also has a huge impact on your long term health.
For years the perfect breakfast as depicted in popular American culture has always included the classic staples: Eggs, bacon and/or sausage, toast, juice or fruit, and something sweet like pancakes or waffles. Since breakfast is regarded as the most important meal of the day, many of these depictions are comically large spreads on a cloth-covered table, so much food that there’s no way even a family of four could eat it all. It’s hardly the picture of perfect health.
Nowadays, people are so busy that there's often not enough time to cook an elaborate meal or even set the table, with many on-the-go individuals opting for a piece of fruit, croissant, or piece of toast on the way to work. While no one is suggesting that every day be brunch-day, or to forget portion sizes, there’s a detriment to neglecting a healthy, balanced breakfast, especially to your digestion.
Our Salvo Health Care Teams, including our board-certified physicians, advocate for a smaller, less sugary, and less processed way to start your day.
What to eat when you’re in a hurry? You might go for what’s easiest and requires less preparation, but some of those options might be harmful for your gut health, and even cause inflammation, making it impossible to maintain focus and energy throughout the day.
You should rethink your breakfast if it includes…
Breakfast pastries like waffles, pancakes, muffins, croissants and biscuits may be easy to grab when you're on the go, but they can contribute to inflammation if you eat them often, Dr. Max Pitman, Salvo Health’s Medical Director told Livestrong.
"Many of these breakfast pastries use some form of refined sugar, like high fructose corn syrup. Eating them often can directly cause inflammation in the gut, or it can lead to blood sugar issues, which can then increase systemic inflammation throughout the body."
It doesn’t mean you need to cut out your beloved pain au chocolat altogether, but maybe make it a once-a-week treat.
Avocado toast might be a little over-hyped, but there’s no denying the power of a breakfast made with whole food-ingredients.
Dr. Max Pitman suggested to Livestrong—and also recommends to our Salvo Health members all the time—that they switch to a breakfast made with fresh ingredients such as eggs, avocados, whole-grain toast or oats for a nutritious oatmeal, and to avoid processed meats like bacon, ham and sausage. He also believes that greek yogurt with berries have the antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties to really kick start your day in a healthy way.
If you’re already making yourself an omelet on the regular, but feeling a mid-day slump or stomach pain regularly, Dr. Erin Hendriks might suggest changing what ingredients you’re adding to your eggs.
"Instead of using processed vegetable oil or butter to cook your eggs, choose an oil with healthier fats such as olive oil. Experiment with different spices such as cumin, paprika, and oregano—all of which have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties." - Dr. Erin Hendriks, Salvo Health provider, for shefinds.com
A few other tips for gussying up your eggs include:
And there you have it, a better way to start your day. If you’re having trouble making necessary changes to your nutrition, and your gut health is suffering because of it, consider signing up for Salvo Health. Our Salvo Health physicians help you identify and get a diagnosis for your gastrointestinal condition, as well as adjust your lifestyle to foster a healthier gut and relieve your painful symptoms. Join today.
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