To kick the energy level into high gear and make each day a top quality one, begin with a nutritious breakfast.

Getting a Good Start

• Studies have shown that breakfast eaters have a faster reaction time throughout the morning and less midday fatigue than those who start the day with only coffee.
• According to Dr. Lawrence Power, professor of internal medicine specializing in endocrinology and nutrition at Wayne State University in Detroit, "a lifetime of regular breakfasts is associated with vigorous old age."
• Another study revealed that breakfast is good not only for the spirits, it also helps lower cholesterol levels. The study published in the Journal of School Health found that kids who regularly ate high-fiber cereals had the lowest cholesterol levels-an average of 149 compared to an average level of 172 for kids who regularly skipped breakfast. All Times of Day Are Not Equal
  • Eating that first meal of the day not only cuts the urge to overeat or snack later, but it is a wise use of caloric intake. A study revealed that if you eat 2,000 calories a day during a single, one-hour breakfast, you'll lose weight. But if you consume those same calories as a single serving late in the day, you will maintain or even gain weight. This is thought to be a reflection of metabolic activities keyed to the body's daily clock, which begins around 4 am and peaks at 4 pm.
  • Another good reason not to skip breakfast is that if you wait too long to eat, your body reacts in the same way it does to a stringent diet. Research has shown that people who skip breakfast have lower metabolic rates than those who regularly eat a morning meal. When your body has nothing to burn, the metabolic furnace never has a chance to get fired up. Food
  • In a study of 52 moderately obese adult women, it was discovered that those who ate three meals a day, including breakfast, lost more weight than those who skipped breakfast.
  It is comforting to know that by choosing the optimal time to eat, we can become more alert, energetic and shed additional pounds in the process.

  Breakfast Beginnings
  Since the days of enjoying a fat-filled breakfast of bacon and eggs have become a dim memory, cereals have become a popular choice to get off to a healthy start.
  Here is how some of those cereals were inspired:

  • In 1921, when a nutritionist accidentally spilled a pot of bran gruel onto a hot stove, General Mills sizzled the idea into those crispy flakes we munch as Wheaties.
  • The origin of Shredded Wheat can be traced to 1890, when a dyspeptic lawyer, Henry Perky, saw another man with a gastrointestinal ailment eating wheat mashed with cream. Perky found relief from the same meal and went on to develop a process that transforms wheat into shredded strips and biscuits.
  • Around 1890, a German immigrant, Ferdinand Schumacher, wondered why Americans fed oats to their horses instead of eating them themselves, as people did in Germany and elsewhere in Europe. Guessing that Americans shunned oatmeal because it was time-consuming to prepare, he developed a quicker version and was soon selling 20 barrels a day in his Akron, Ohio, store.
  
  About the author: Bobbi Moreno, a freelance writer living in Southern California, has been published in numerous magazines, including American Fitness, Lady's Circle, and Complete Woman.