Granma was right: the most important meal of the day
By AARHUS UNIVERSITY
A recent study from Denmark has examined the relationship between dietary habits and cognitive abilities, finding that consuming a breakfast high in protein can increase satiety and improve concentration.
According to the researchers, this insight is particularly valuable in a world
where obesity and diseases related to lifestyle choices are on the rise.
“Breakfast is the most important meal of the day.” This
is a well-worn platitude that has never had much basis in scientific evidence.
But a new Danish study has explored how different types
of breakfast affect satiety and concentration and it has added new fuel to the
old cliché.
The study followed 30 obese women aged 18 to 30 for three
days, during which the women consumed a protein-rich breakfast, a
carbohydrate-rich breakfast, or no breakfast at all. The women’s sense of
satiety, hormone levels, and energy intake were measured at lunchtime. Their
total daily energy intake was measured as well.
The participants also had to complete a cognitive
concentration test during the study.
“We found that a protein-rich breakfast with skyr (a sour-milk product) and oats increased satiety and concentration in the participants, but it did not reduce the overall energy intake compared to skipping breakfast or eating a carbohydrate-rich breakfast,” says Mette Hansen, associate professor and Ph.D. at the Department of Public Health, and one of the authors of the study.
Possible strategy to combat obesity?
The number of overweight people is increasing both in
Denmark and across the globe. Obesity is often accompanied by lifestyle-related
diseases such as type 2 diabetes.
Previous studies have shown that people who eat breakfast
have a lower BMI than people who do not eat breakfast, and protein-rich foods
have generally been shown to have an increased satiety effect compared to
carbohydrate-rich and high-fat foods with the same calorie content.
The idea was therefore to test whether a protein-rich
breakfast could be a good strategy for achieving greater satiety during the day
and thus reducing daily calorie intake.
However, the solution is not that simple, says Mette
Hansen:
“The results confirm that protein-rich meals increase a
sense of satiety, which is positive with regard to preventing weight gain.
However, the results also suggest that for this nutritional strategy to be
effective, it’s not enough to just eat a protein-rich breakfast.”
Intriguing difference
The potential of replacing a carbohydrate-rich diet with
a protein-rich diet can clearly be seen in the satiating effects measured in
the study.
Several of the subjects had difficulty consuming the
entire protein-rich breakfast consisting of skyr and oats.
“It’s intriguing that there can be such a big difference
in the satiety effect of two different meals with the same calorie content. Had
the women in the project been allowed to choose the size of the meal
themselves, it’s likely that they’d have consumed more food and thereby more
calories on the day
they were served bread and jam than on the day they were
given skyr and oats,” explains Mette Hansen.
Further research needed
According to the researcher, although the study has
provided important insights, it also has its limitations because only
overweight young women participated in the study. The study is also based on
relatively short-term observations, leaving open the question of how long-term
dietary changes can affect health and weight.
Mette Hansen therefore points out that the study
underlines the need for further research to understand how different types of
food affect health over time.
“We already have new data incoming from a trial where
participants received either a high-protein breakfast or a low-protein
breakfast. The objective was to study how the different types of breakfast
affect body composition and other parameters such as microbiota and cholesterol
levels,” says Mette Hansen.
According to Mette Hansen, the results of these studies
may result in the development of more targeted nutritional recommendations in
the future.
Reference: “A dairy-based protein-rich breakfast enhances
satiety and cognitive concentration before lunch in young females with
overweight to obesity: A randomized controlled cross-over study” by L.B.
Dalgaard, D.Z. Kruse, K. Norup, B.V. Andersen and M. Hansen, 21 December
2023, Journal of Dairy Science.
DOI:
10.3168/jds.2023-24152