Allison Straus of Ursuline High School

By ALLISON STRAUS
URSULINE HIGH SCHOOL, 16

For as long as I can remember, my mom has kept an eye on my nutrition. She has taught me that breakfast is the most important meal of the day because it gives you the energy you need to focus throughout the day, it helps you lose weight and it helps you start your day off on the right foot. Breakfast also has other beneficial factors, such as improving concentration and increasing nutrition. Breakfast keeps you focused, on task and can improve your performance in the workplace, school or even in sports.
I have been swimming competitively for eight years, and in my personal experience breakfast has helped me tremendously. Swimming is an incredibly taxing sport and can make you very tired, so it is really important to get a well-balanced breakfast so that I can perform well in competition and in practice.
Those who eat breakfast make better food choices throughout the day, and eating breakfast gives you essential nutrients, such as proteins, carbohydrates and fats that your body needs. Eating breakfast <NO1><NO>boosts metabolism, which produces enzymes needed to lose weight and metabolize fat. Those who do not eat breakfast usually feel very hungry, which causes them to eat larger meals later in the day. This is not good for your metabolism because your body needs to be taking in smaller amounts of food as the day goes on. Those who think that lunch and dinner are the most important meals of the day are wrong. In fact, breakfast should be the largest meal of the day because it takes the entire day for your body to digest food. The best time to be digesting food is during the day when you are active. Evening meals of more than 500 calories can cause bloating and discomfort, which can interfere with sleep.
Having breakfast is great, but not if your meal consists of sugary cereals, saturated fats or bad carbohydrates. You should eat lean protein and carbohydrates, such as whole wheat toast. Oatmeal and eggs are great, too. A really good breakfast that I love is two egg whites with cheese, a piece of whole wheat toast, a piece of turkey bacon or chicken apple sausage and fruit. If you’re not that hungry, then a piece of whole wheat toast with peanut butter or peanut butter and apples are great. If you’re in a rush, cook oatmeal the night before and refrigerate it. When you wake in the morning, it only takes five minutes to heat up.
Eating breakfast makes you feel better and when you don’t eat it, you feel tired and grumpy. Studies show people who eat breakfast are more focused and can concentrate longer during the day. Breakfast will put you in a better mood and you will feel better because your body is receiving nutrition.