Eating a balanced breakfast
What makes a healthy breakfast?
Putting it
together
This week, learn how to optimise your breakfast, which is often considered
the most important meal of the day. If it ‘s put together correctly, it can
provide loads of nutrients and energy, setting you up for the day ahead.
Ideally, breakfast is not a meal that should be skipped.
Let’s take a look at what
makes a good breakfast.
Your breakfast plate
3 main components
The 3 main components of breakfast should include: a high-protein food, a
good quality, starchy food and fruit or vegetables. Each component should take
up a third of the plate. These guidelines don ‘t refer to the weight, but the
volume of these ingredients. What ‘s important is the proportions.
The proportions don ‘t need to
be exact, but give an idea of how much space each component should take up on
the plate
High-protein foods
About a third of breakfast should include high-protein foods. This includes
milk and dairy products like cheese, yoghurt, low-fat quark, cream cheese and
cottage cheese, as well as turkey, chicken breast and cooked ham. Other sources
of protein are eggs, fish and tofu.
Proteins keep you feeling full
for longer
High quality starchy foods
Less
complicated than it sounds
Starchy products should also make up about a third of the ideal breakfast
plate. Have wholegrain products like wholewheat bread, oats and other
wholegrain flakes. These foods offer valuable fibre that keeps us feeling
fuller for longer. They ‘re also hard to beat when it comes to vitamins and
minerals. Be careful when choosing
granola and other breakfast cereals – they can be real sugar traps! Have
unsweetened flakes and brighten up muesli with fresh fruit and nuts.
Fruit and vegetables
Make things
colourful
The final third of an ideal breakfast plate should include fruit or
vegetables. They bring variety to our diet, are fresh and crisp, and packed
with vitamins and minerals. They also have a low calorie count which makes them
an essential part of every meal. Try fruit in muesli, tomato or cucumber slices
on bread, fruit salad or a glass of unsweetened fruit or vegetable juice.
As a rule of thumb, fill up a
third of your plate with fruit and vegetables.