Welcome back, dear colleagues and friends, to this Cuisine & Culture “no skipping breakfast!” special which is long over due with “skipping breakfast” among colleagues for any or no reasons an increasingly prevalent phenomenon at various duty stations to the great detriment of health of those who do so as well as work productivity and quality.

To bring to the urgent attention of the “breakfast skipping” colleagues the harmful effects of eating no breakfast with the hope of persuading them to reverse such harmful practice with healthy and easy to make breakfast diet to help them set a right tone for the day ahead Cuisine & Culture presents the following

                             Top 10 Reasons Not to Skip Breakfast

1. Break the fast. The significance of breaking the fast can’t be over emphasized. What does “breakfast” mean? Your body responds to not eating for hours and hours by “slowing down”; diminishing its metabolic rate and burning fewer calories to conserve energy. By eating breakfast, you wake up your metabolism and get your engine humming, burning those calories you need to burn to lose weight.

2. Eat more, weigh less. Researchers have repeatedly shown that people who eat breakfast have a better chance of losing weight, and keeping it off. When you skip meals, you’re so hungry by lunchtime you eat the entire cow! The US National Weight Control Registry shows that among those who’ve lost 30 or more pounds and have kept it off more than a year, 90 percent report eating breakfast most days of the week.

3.  Do better at work and school. Breakfast helps wake you up. Studies show that people who eat breakfast are more alert and do better on tests than people who skip breakfast. Eating breakfast helps “improve memory and positively affects the tasks that require the retention of new information. Conversely, a hungry child can be apathetic, disinterested, and irritable when confronted with difficult tasks. Breakfast is the key.” No doubt adults need breakfast as much as kids do.

4. Breakfast is your chance to eat the foods you may not eat the rest of the day. You can’t go wrong with a whole-grain cereal and berries with nonfat milk -- here is your fiber, folic acid and calcium in one easy-to-grab bowl.

5. Skipping breakfast makes you grouchy. Studies show that people who eat breakfast tend to be in better moods. Breakfast gets you started on the right track for the day. If you start out with a healthy breakfast, then you set the mood for lunch. You’re more likely to choose something reasonable for lunch if you’ve paid some attention to your breakfast choices.

6. Cancel the danish or sugared doughnut first thing in the morning; they cause a blood sugar dip a couple of hours later. You’ll be desperate for something to perk you up, and will be more likely to grab another high-sugar refined carb for a quick sugar rush.

7. Breakfast makes your machine run better. Get yourself on a schedule with a healthy breakfast, and you’re ready to take on the world.

8. Set a good example for your children. By skipping breakfast, your kids will think it’s not important. Breakfast doesn’t have to be a big affair, but don’t wimp out. Make it a habit, and your kids will be way ahead of the game, too.

9. Don’t eat dessert for breakfast. If you think a glazed doughnut or a breakfast bar with 30 grams of sugar are breakfast items, then think again. Doughnuts are fried lumps of sugared dough, and many breakfast bars should be labeled “candy bars” instead. Remember, a bad breakfast is worse than no breakfast.

10. Watch out the labels. "Nutritious," doesn't necessarily always mean healthy. Cereal manufacturers are experts in marketing, using words that send a message of health. Unless you read the labels, you eat at your own risk. Kids' cereals can have more sugar than candy. Protect your kids from getting hooked on these cereals; they'll get used to all the sugar, and will want only pre-sweetened cereals.

Buy cereals that have minimal sugar such as regular Cheerios, not honey nut or other sweetened versions; corn flakes, not frosted flakes; shredded wheat minis, not frosted and sugared; and look into some of the newer, healthier cereals like Kashi (the unsweetened kind). Then let your taste buds rule. Add your own sugar. I guarantee what you or your kids add will be a fraction of what the cereal guys add -- sometimes up to eight or nine equivalent teaspoons per one-cup serving.

What you SHOULD be eating and enjoying Too

Eat cereals that are low in sugar. Cereal with milk is a great breakfast. It really is a good all-around meal. Remember - low or no sugar is what you want.

·         Eat eggs, they are good for breakfast. Eat eggs, but eat them in moderation, of course.

·         Try a new egg sandwich. You can put cheese or ham on yours. Use your imagination, these are really fun to make. Be creative.

·         Eat pancakes. Yes, they are great from time to time. Try to get yourself one of those griddles that you don't need to add fat too. That way you’ll be able to eat these pancakes more often. To cut down on calories (and that’s what you want), instead of using butter and syrup, put fresh fruit on yours.

·         Eat old-fashioned toast. Toast is still a great thing to eat. Just make sure you don't load it up with too much butter or similar things.

·         Eat oatmeal. Add some milk if you want and a bit of sugar and you have a breakfast that will stick to your ribs!

·         Drink juice when you have breakfast! Trust me, you don’t need coffee in the morning; you can get morning energy by just drinking juice. And you don't have to worry about getting the shakes if you drink too much of this juice.

·         Fruit salads can be great for breakfast. Just throw your favorite fruits together and call it a meal! There you go. Enjoy it, and make sure you show your friends this wonderful meal.

10 Tasty, Easy and Healthy Breakfast Ideas

You get up in the morning, you rush to get ready for work and you rush out the door without a breakfast. Perhaps you grab a bagel and cream cheese, perhaps a muffin, perhaps a doughnut. If you’re lucky, you get a pastry, a hearty breakfast of pancakes and sausage and eggs, or an English fry-up.

Unfortunately, when it comes to being healthy, none of these options is a great way to start your day.

We certainly wish to know about healthy breakfast ideas, and in truth, it’s a dilemma that many of us face each day. Either we don’t have time for breakfast, or we don’t have many healthy options.

The first problem is a problem, because it means that you start the day with an empty stomach. That means that by the time you are getting into the swing of work, your blood-sugar levels are dangerously low. The result: you need an instant sugar fix, which usually means a doughnut or pastry or some other unhealthy choice.

The second problem is also a real problem, because traditional breakfasts don’t usually come in healthy flavors. Here are the options that most people think of as breakfast: Say “no” to       

• Too sugary or carb-filled. Pancakes, waffles, toast, donuts, pastries, scones, bagels, pies, sugar cereals, breakfast bars, muffins (which, let’s face it, are usually just cake). Cuisine & Culture is not anti-carb, but the problem with many breakfast choices is that they are high in fat and low in protein, and nothing but empty carb calories. This starts your day with a high blood-sugar level, which your body will quickly adjust for and drop, and you’ll be on a roller-coaster blood-sugar ride all day.
• Too fatty. Fried eggs, sausages, bacon, cream cheese on your bagels, cheesy omelettes, Egg McMuffins, Sausage McMuffins, hash browns, anything English or Scottish.

What does that leave us with? Actually, there are a lot of options. The 10 below are just a few ideas, but you surely can think of many more. Look for protein without too much saturated fat. Look for whole-grain carbs. Look for low-fat dairy or soy options. Look for fiber and nutrients.

But how do you find the time? You make the time. Get up 15 minutes earlier. Pack something to eat on the road or when you first get to work. Prepare it the night before if necessary. I recommend the first option — waking a little earlier — as it’s nice to be able to have a nice cup of tea or coffee with your breakfast, relaxing before the rush of the day starts.

Oatmeal, flaxseed, blueberries & almonds This is the perfect breakfast. Steel-cut oatmeal is probably the healthier choice, but if you are in a hurry, the instant kind will do fine (it doesn’t have as much fiber, but the other ingredients make up for that). After microwaving the oatmeal, add ground flaxseed, frozen blueberries, sliced almonds. You can add a little cinnamon and honey (not a lot) if you’re using the non-instant oatmeal. That’s four power foods, full of fiber and nutrients and protein and good fats, with only a couple of minutes of prep time. And very tasty!

Kashi Golean Crunch Actually, any whole-grain, high-fiber cereal is a good choice. It has a high amount of protein and fiber, low sugar. Add low-fat milk or soy milk (which has 1/3 the saturated fat of 1% milk), perhaps some berries if you like.

Scrambled tofu  Healthier than scrambled eggs. Add some onions, green peppers or other veggies, some light soy sauce or tamari, maybe some garlic powder, and black pepper, stir-fry with a little olive oil. Eat with whole-grain toast. Fast and delicious.

Fresh berries, yogurt, granola Get low-fat yogurt (not non-fat, as it often has too much sugar) or soy yogurt, cut up some berries or other fruits, add some healthy cereal. I actually use the Kashi Golean Crunch instead of granola, as many brands of granola have way too much fat and/or sugar.

Grapefruit with whole-wheat toast & almond butter Add a little sugar on top of the grapefruit, and it’s actually pretty good. The almond butter is healthier than peanut-butter, with lots of good protein to fill you up.

Fresh fruit salad Cut up some apples, melons, berries, oranges, pears, bananas, grapes … any or all or whatever your favorite fruits are. Add a little bit of lime or lemon juice. Perfect.

Protein shake with extras  Use soy protein powder, but whey works well too. Blend up with low-fat milk or soy milk, some frozen blueberries, and perhaps some almond butter or oatmeal. That may sound weird, but it’s actually pretty good, and pretty filling. A little ground flax seed works well too.

Eggs with peppers Egg whites are healthier than whole eggs. Scramble with a little olive oil, red and green bell peppers, maybe broccoli, onions, black pepper. Goes well with whole-wheat toast.

Cottage cheese and fruit Get low-fat cottage cheese. Add any kind of fruit. Apples, citrus, berries.

Veggie Soup with crackers A nutritious and tasty warm veggie soup with your favorite crackers goes a long way for your day ahead.

Enjoy!!!

From the Editor: Cuisine & Culture obtains its materials both online and off line with sources omitted for reason of simplicity but can be provided upon request. Certain materials come in languages other than English that Cuisine & Culture renders into English to the best of its ability. Cuisine & Culture is not in a position to verify the veracity of the materials provided herein. Reader’s discretion is kindly advised.

A Special Acknowledgement of Thanks from Cuisine & Culture

Cuisine & Culture wishes to express its heartfelt thanks to Kevin Wambura of the ITS team here at UNON in Nairobi and Yawtsong Lee, a veteran interpreter at UN headquarters, now retired, for their technical advice and assistance and is hereby extremely pleased to retain them as Technical Advisors to Cuisine & Culture.