'big Breakfast' Diet Helps Shed Pounds

[sbk]

'Big Breakfast' Diet Helps Shed Pounds

Study Shows 600-Calorie Breakfasts Reduce Food Cravings Later in the Day

By Kathleen Doheny

WebMD Health News

Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD

June 17, 2008 -- Eating a 600-calorie breakfast rich in carbohydrates and protein helps dieters lose more weight long term than eating a modest breakfast and following a lower-carb eating plan, according to a new study.

Breakfast and weight loss have long been linked, but the new research zeroes in on how to help dieters stick with a plan and not regain the lost weight by adjusting the amount of carbohydrates, protein, and calories eaten early in the day.

"Those on the 'big breakfast diet' feel less hungry before lunch and all day," says Daniela Jakubowicz, MD, an endocrinologist in Caracas, Venezuela, and a clinical professor at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, who led the study. She is presenting her findings this week at ENDO 08, the 90th annual meeting of The Endocrine Society in San Francisco.

With colleagues from Virginia Commonwealth University, Jakubowicz assigned 94 obese, physically inactive women, on average in their 30s, to two groups:

* The low-carb diet group of 46 women was instructed to eat a small breakfast totaling about 290 calories that was low in carbohydrates and typically didn't include bread. A sample breakfast might have included a cup of milk, one egg, three slices of bacon, and two teaspoons of butter. When they visited the study center, these women ate breakfast there and their food was monitored. They ate an average of 1,085 calories a day.

* The big-breakfast group of 48 women was told to eat a breakfast of about 610 calories. A sample breakfast: a cup of milk, turkey, cheese, two slices of bread, mayonnaise, 1 ounce of chocolate candy, and a protein shake. They could eat the breakfast in stages from the time they got up until 9 a.m. This group averaged 1,240 calories a day.

Both groups stayed on the diet for four months to lose weight, and then shifted to maintenance mode for the last four months.

At the four-month mark, the dieters eating the modest breakfast dropped about 28 pounds, while those on the big breakfast plan lost 23 pounds.

The real differences showed up at the eight-month mark, when the low-carb dieters had regained an average of 18 pounds and the big-breakfast eaters continued to lose, dropping another 16.5 pounds on average.

In all, members of the big-breakfast group lost more than 21% of their body weight; low-carb group members lost 4.5%.

A bonus, says Jakubowicz, is that the big-breakfast dieters reported less hunger and fewer cravings for carbohydrates than the other group.

Big Breakfast Diet

Some of the study findings make perfect sense and are well known to nutrition experts, says Joan Salge Blake, RD, a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association and a professor of nutrition at Boston University, who reviewed the study for WebMD.

Source: WebMD

[tominbkk]

I am much better off having some fresh juice (that I juice myself), followed by small serving of oatmeal with soy milk and some raspberries or blueberries. I try not to make any meal too big. I am working really hard to leave the table just satiated and not stuffed (a concept alien to my entire family and my upbringing).

[desi]

If I have a big breakfast then I am hungrier during the day. After playing around with low carb, low fat, and seems like everything else in between, I've settled on cereal (granola or bran types) with soya. Fruit on top if I'm in the mood.

[Tolley]

I believe this study and think that it could have good benefits for many people.

A good amount of protein in the morning is vital to keep you going for a few hours and keep hunger pains away.

If i eat a big which is rarely i find that i can go for hours without getting hungry.

Nromally all i have is a boiled egg on wholemeal toast or a banana smoothie with protein powder.

Another good method for losing weight is to get rid of your tv set.

It is quite amazing how much more active you become if you don't have the idiot box to sit around all night.

[dclaryjr]

Another good method for losing weight is to get rid of your tv set.

I'd probably have to get rid of my computer to gain this benefit!!

BTW, I eat about a 500 calorie breakfast. But I might "break the fast" at 8.a.m some mornings, or wait until 10 or 11 other mornings. I try to go 20 hours with out eating once or twice a week. Google "intermittant fasting"--some good info.

[hanno]

Nothing new there, and it makes sense: after not having eaten for 8-10 hours, your body runs on empty and desperately needs food.

Incidentally, 600 calories is not all thaaaat much, so forget about that 4-egg omelet with the pancakes and maple syrup

[dclaryjr]

Nothing new there, and it makes sense: after not having eaten for 8-10 hours, your body runs on empty and desperately needs food.

Not true...the body can run on stored body fat for some time. I am nowhere near "desperate" after fasting for 10 hours. I routinely go at least 12-14 hours between my last evening meal and breakfast.

[hanno]

Nothing new there, and it makes sense: after not having eaten for 8-10 hours, your body runs on empty and desperately needs food.

Not true...the body can run on stored body fat for some time. I am nowhere near "desperate" after fasting for 10 hours. I routinely go at least 12-14 hours between my last evening meal and breakfast.

You could probably go without food for 3 weeks, but that was not my point. For weight-loss reasons, a good breakfast is essential, there are a number of studies that have confirmed that. Among other things, regular meals avoid the craving for (unhealthy) snacks and way-too-large meals in one sitting. I also like to compare the body to a car: sure you can drive until the tank is empty, but is it good for the car???

Finally, I have to disappoint you: fat is the last thing the body attacks when out of food, it will go for easier-to-mobilize energy first.

[dclaryjr]

Nothing new there, and it makes sense: after not having eaten for 8-10 hours, your body runs on empty and desperately needs food.

Not true...the body can run on stored body fat for some time. I am nowhere near "desperate" after fasting for 10 hours. I routinely go at least 12-14 hours between my last evening meal and breakfast.

You could probably go without food for 3 weeks, but that was not my point. For weight-loss reasons, a good breakfast is essential, there are a number of studies that have confirmed that. Among other things, regular meals avoid the craving for (unhealthy) snacks and way-too-large meals in one sitting. I also like to compare the body to a car: sure you can drive until the tank is empty, but is it good for the car???

Finally, I have to disappoint you: fat is the last thing the body attacks when out of food, it will go for easier-to-mobilize energy first.

First, I was just contesting your phrasing of "desparately needing food" after 8-10 hours. That's just not true.

Also, please point me to any study that confirmes that breakfast is "essential" for weight loss. I think you'll have a very hard time doing that. You might find some that find correlation between people who ate a good breakfast and lost weight, but that won't show that breakfast is essential.

And what "easier-to-mobilize" energy are you referring to?

[dougieboy]

Another good method for losing weight is to get rid of your tv set.

I'd probably have to get rid of my computer to gain this benefit!!

BTW, I eat about a 500 calorie breakfast. But I might "break the fast" at 8.a.m some mornings, or wait until 10 or 11 other mornings. I try to go 20 hours with out eating once or twice a week. Google "intermittant fasting"--some good info.

Nice avatar

[hanno]

Also, please point me to any study that confirmes that breakfast is "essential" for weight loss. I think you'll have a very hard time doing that. You might find some that find correlation between people who ate a good breakfast and lost weight, but that won't show that breakfast is essential

Eating breakfast helps teens lose weight, says US study

By Jerome Taylor

Wednesday, 5 March 2008

Alamy

The teenagers who ate breakfast took on more calories than those who did not, but also burnt more off

Eating breakfast helps teenagers lose weight, a survey of eating habits in the United States has found.

The study showed that those who tuck in to a healthy breakfast – and therefore end up with a higher calorie intake – still tend to have a lower body mass index than those who skip the first meal of the day.

The research was conducted at the University of Minnesota and published in the Paediatrics journal.

Dr Mark Pereira, who led the research, admitted the study could paint a confusing picture for those who believe that the less you eat the less you weigh.

"It may seem counterintuitive," he said. "But while they ate more calories, they did more to burn those off, and that may be because those who ate breakfast did not feel so lethargic."

Dr Peraira added that even cooked breakfasts were better than missing out on food altogether. "While it's best to go for a healthy option – a wholegrain cereal for instance – the evidence does seem to suggest that eating anything is better than eating nothing."

The research is one of a number of recent studies that give credence to the theory that breakfast is not only a crucial component of a healthy diet but also encourages the body to stay toned.

A recent French study found that men and women who ate breakfast at least 10 out of 12 days tended to have lower waist to hip ratios than those that who did not. And a study of nearly 7,000 middle-aged adults in Norfolk revealed that those who ate the most in the morning put the least amount of weight on overall.

Anna Denny, a nutritional scientist at the British Nutrition Foundation, said: "There have been quite a few studies now that show eating breakfast is a crucial part of keeping a healthy weight. The key concept is those who eat breakfast tend to be less likely to snack on high-fat foods before the lunch period and therefore have a much healthier diet."

Dr Pereira said: "This study clearly supports what other studies have shown: kids who skip breakfast tend to gain more weight, and therefore would be at a higher risk for obesity."

Skipping breakfast is one of the most common approaches to dieting used by those who want to lose weight, particularly among teenage girls.

Lose Weight: Eat Breakfast

Studies show making breakfast a daily habit can help you lose weight - and keep it off.

By Jeanie Lerche Davis

WebMD FeatureReviewed by Louise Chang, MDWhat's for breakfast - coffee? Most mornings, we barely glance at the kitchen. Fixing breakfast takes up precious time that's in short supply. But there's ample evidence that the simple act of eating breakfast -- every day -- is a big part of losing weight, lots of weight.

"People skip breakfast thinking they're cutting calories, but by mid-morning and lunch, that person is starved," says Milton Stokes, RD, MPH, chief dietitian for St. Barnabas Hospital in New York City. "Breakfast skippers replace calories during the day with mindless nibbling, bingeing at lunch and dinner. They set themselves up for failure."

The Benefits of Breakfast

Eating breakfast is a daily habit for the "successful losers" who belong to The National Weight Control Registry. These people have maintained a 30-pound (or more) weight loss for at least a year, and some as long as six years.

"Most -- 78% -- reported eating breakfast every day, and almost 90% reported eating breakfast at least five days a week - which suggests that starting the day with breakfast is an important strategy to lose weight and keep it off," says James O. Hill, PhD, the Registry's co-founder and director of the Center for Human Nutrition at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center.

Earlier this year, two studies in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association backed up this finding. Though they were funded by cereal companies, dietitians say they underscore the message - breakfast is important to weight loss.

A group of researchers analyzed data from a government-funded study that followed more than 2,000 young girls from ages 9 to 19. They found that regular cereal eaters had fewer weight problems than infrequent cereal eaters. Those who ate cereal occasionally had a 13% higher risk of being overweight compared to the regular cereal eaters.

Another research group analyzed government data on 4,200 adults. They found that regular breakfast eaters were more likely to exercise regularly. And women who ate breakfast regularly tended to eat fewer calories overall during the day. Those men and women who ate breakfast cereal had lower overall fat intake -- compared to those who ate other breakfast foods.

It makes sense: Eating early in the day keeps us from "starvation eating" later on. But it also jump-starts your metabolism, says Elisabetta Politi, RD, MPH, nutrition manager for the Duke Diet & Fitness Center at Duke University Medical School. "When you don't eat breakfast, you're actually fasting for 15 to 20 hours, so you're not producing the enzymes needed to metabolize fat to lose weight."

Among the people she counsels, breakfast eaters are usually those who have lost a significant amount of weight. They also exercise. "They say that before having breakfast regularly, they would eat most of their calories after 5 p.m.," Politi tells WebMD. "Now, they try to distribute calories throughout the day. It makes sense that the body wants to be fueled."

Oh, and the body burns glycogen before it turns to fat.

Edited August 4, 2008 by hanno

[dclaryjr]

I'm sorry but nothing you posted supports saying breakfast is "essential" for losing weight. All those studies did was show that in their control groups, the people who didn't eat breakfast made some bad choices. That's not the same thing. I can show you studies of people who consolidated all their eating into 6-8 hours windows, and lost weight while improving blood chemistry. You really should google "intermittent fasting" and read up on it.

Oh, and the body burns glycogen before it turns to fat.

No kidding. The body goes through that rather quickly and we're discussing people who haven't eaten. You can only store so much before insulin kicks in and stores excess carbs in fat cells. But when you fast, especially if you combine that with low-carb eating, then you burn fat for fuel. Mark Sisson (MDA) sums it nicely:

"If you’ve forgotten everything you ever learned in biology, just remember this and “own” it: Carbohydrate drives insulin drives fat (Cahill 1965, and Taubes 2007). The idea in the PB is to limit your carbs to only those you need to provide glucose for the brain and for some reasonable amount (certainly less than an hour) of occasional anaerobic exercise. And the truth is, you don’t even need glucose to fuel the brain. Ketones from a very-low carb diet work extremely efficiently at that task. Either way, ideally, we would like most of our daily energy to come from dietary or stored fats. Typically, (if you are at an ideal body composition now) I use a rule of thumb that 100-150 grams of carbohydrate per day is plenty to keep you out of ketosis (and ketosis is NOT a bad thing) but away from storing the excess as fat if you are the least bit active. Don’t forget that your body can make up to 200 grams of glycogen from fats and protein every day, too. On the other hand, if you are looking to lose body fat, keeping carbs to under 80 grams per day will help immensely in lowering insulin and taking fat out of storage. On the other other hand, if you are insistent on training hard for long periods of time, you would add more carbs (say, 100 per day extra for every extra hour you train hard). It becomes a matter of doing the math and experimenting with the results."

[dclaryjr]

Nice avatar

If you're talking about mine--I only wish my swing looked that smooth.

If not, nevermind!

[hanno]

Ah well, I will cotinue to eat my breakfast and that is that.

[dclaryjr]

Ah well, I will cotinue to eat my breakfast

Me too. Enjoy!

[Beacher]

I've always heard the following expression in regard to proper eating habits:

"Breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a pauper."

Of course it means that your biggest meal of the day should be breakfast, lunch the second largest, and dinner the smallest.

This makes perfect sense as eating our largest meal of the day in the morning gives us the rest of the day to work it off. Unfortunately, many of us do it opposite to this and consume our largest meal in the evening when we are least active -- sitting around watching TV or something equally non-active.

[dclaryjr]

I've always heard the following expression in regard to proper eating habits:

"Breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a pauper."

Of course it means that your biggest meal of the day should be breakfast, lunch the second largest, and dinner the smallest.

This makes perfect sense as eating our largest meal of the day in the morning gives us the rest of the day to work it off. Unfortunately, many of us do it opposite to this and consume our largest meal in the evening when we are least active -- sitting around watching TV or something equally non-active.

Lots of sources out there that put this in the urban legend category. Here's one:

Study

The notion that you can "work off" your food intake is greatly exaggerated.

[Beacher]

I've always heard the following expression in regard to proper eating habits:

"Breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a pauper."

Of course it means that your biggest meal of the day should be breakfast, lunch the second largest, and dinner the smallest.

This makes perfect sense as eating our largest meal of the day in the morning gives us the rest of the day to work it off. Unfortunately, many of us do it opposite to this and consume our largest meal in the evening when we are least active -- sitting around watching TV or something equally non-active.

Lots of sources out there that put this in the urban legend category. Here's one:

Study

The notion that you can "work off" your food intake is greatly exaggerated.

Thanks for the link. I'm always interested in other opinions. Unfortunately, I don't know how much faith I can put in this study because it states:

"Scientists at Oregon Health & Science University in the United States carried out tests on 47 female monkeys..."

We aren't monkeys and we're not all female. Are there no studies around that use a decent cross section of HUMANS -- varying ages, lifestyles, etc.? I'm a bit confused as to why you would offer this as evidence (with no humans involved) when according to you "There are lots of sources out there that put this in the urban legend category". Why choose one that uses monkeys instead of people?

The largest meal in the morning with smaller meals to follow thoughout the day works for me and makes sense. But I'm quite open alternative views -- just give me some studies to consider that involve HUMANS.

[Tolley]

On the breakfast thing.

You need a good breakfast with some protein otherwise blood sugar levels drop too low and then you crave sugar and then you eat some sugary crap. That then starts a viscous cylce.

Most research that i have read recommends small meals five or six times a day to keep you metabolism primed up and at maximum burn level.

On the whole issue of weight it is interesting to note that one of the greatest indicators for cancer prediction is the waist measurement. Anything over 100cm puts you in the danger areas for a number of cancers.

Under 94cm puts you in the safe or very low risk category for many cancers.

Interesting statistics and worth pondering when you

[dclaryjr]

We aren't monkeys and we're not all female. Are there no studies around that use a decent cross section of HUMANS -- varying ages, lifestyles, etc.? I'm a bit confused as to why you would offer this as evidence (with no humans involved) when according to you "There are lots of sources [/size]out there that put this in the urban legend category". Why choose one that uses monkeys instead of people?

The largest meal in the morning with smaller meals to follow thoughout the day works for me and makes sense. But I'm quite open alternative views -- just give me some studies to consider that involve HUMANS.

It was one of the first that popped up in a Google search. Go here and follow the several links and you'll find more based on human studies. You will also find some backing for the notion that eating breakfast is a good idea. I'm fine with that--my earlier reaction was more against the choice of words indicating it was "essential." Regardless of WHEN you eat, you must exercise some discipline and eat the right things.

I've been researching the topic of nutrition rather extensively over the last year. One thing that stands out is that once something reaches the point of becoming "conventional wisdom", it's hard for a lot of people to even admit to the possibility it's wrong, or at least that there is a feasible alternative.

BTW, the bulk of my intake does come before 2pm--I don't typically eat a very large evening meal. Works for me. But I know of at least a couple people that condense all their eating in a six-eight hour window and do well.

We're each an experiment of one!