The Most Important Meal of The Day!

          If you’ve heard it once, you’ve heard it a thousand times, “breakfast is the most important meal of the day”, but why is breakfast so important? Well, according to https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/healthyliving/breakfast it is because “it breaks the overnight fasting period, replenishes your supply of glucose and provides other essential nutrients to keep your energy levels up throughout the day”. This is very important to your mental health because when you don’t have the nutrients your body needs to thrive, it messes you up internally and throws your entire system off. We are not independent systems of ourselves, everything in our body works together. That’s why once we are in pain, our mood declines and the same thing happens when we don’t get enough to eat. It may not seem like it initially, but when we don’t fuel our bodies sufficiently our body has to take it from somewhere leaving our other systems depleted. According to, https://www.canadapharmacyonline.com/blog/Six-Ways-Eating-a-Healthy-Breakfast-Can-Improve-Mental-Health.html, when we eat a balanced breakfast it helps to improve our mood, helps with concentration, can help metabolize medications, help with brain development, maintain weight control and lower stress. With all these benefits why wouldn’t we want to take an extra few minutes to grab a healthy breakfast?

I know that life gets busy and essentially, we get used to running on E, however, this is no way to treat our bodies. When one is suffering from a mental health issue such as depression or anxiety it is very easy to overlook the basic such as eating properly, so to practice healthy eating habits when you are in a state of well being is vital. There are plenty of quick, healthy options such as (https://thegirlonbloor.com/15-quick-healthy-breakfast-ideas-for-busy-mornings/ )

Avocado toast with egg

Protein bar and banana

Oatmeal and berries

Fruit and yogurt smoothie

Greek yogurt and granola

Nut butter toast with fruit

Frozen whole-wheat waffles with fruit and peanut butter

Microwave quiche

These are just a few ideas to get you started. You can try waking up a little earlier to get heartier meals or prepping your breakfast the night before if this doesn’t sound appealing to you. Whatever you do make sure you are taking care of yourself and getting the nutrients your body deserves so that you are working at maximum capacity. Eating a healthy breakfast doesn’t have to be a chore. It can be a delight and something to look forward to in the morning knowing all of the benefits that come from it. So, next time you think about skipping breakfast, just keep in mind all the benefits you’ll be missing out on and snag that healthy meal!

By Garcsa Brooks

Intern, Olive Branch Counseling Associates Inc