If you eat the wrong breakfast, constipation and obesity will follow! Nutritionist Sun Yuming reveals: Golden breakfast for 4 major groups

Breakfast is the source of energy to start the day, but are you eating breakfast right? Eating the wrong breakfast may lead to constipation and obesity! There are hundreds of breakfasts in Taiwan, so you need to be more careful in choosing a healthy breakfast, did you know? Different types of work and amounts of activity will result in slightly different amounts of nutritional intake, so let nutritionist Sun Yuming introduce breakfast combinations suitable for the four major groups!

How much should you eat for breakfast? Best to control it within 500~600kcal

Modern people's breakfast habits are most likely to be to buy and eat whatever they want because they are in a hurry to go out. If they have no appetite, they will just eat one or two bites to fill their stomach, or even eat nothing. Nutritionist Sun Yuming said that after a whole night's rest, if you don't eat breakfast, in addition to not having enough energy to supply the brain and body, it may also lead to too long fasting time, resulting in overeating at lunch and dinner and weight gain, endocrine disorders, chronic diseases, gastrointestinal diseases, etc., which should not be underestimated.

According to the daily dietary guidelines of the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the average daily calorie requirement for adult women and men is 1800 kcal and 2000 kcal. Taking a normal three meals a day as an example, breakfast accounts for about 30% of our entire day's calorie intake, which is equivalent to about 500~600 kcal.

4 major groups follow nutritionists to eat like this, full of energy and not tired

Whether you are eating breakfast at a convenience store, breakfast shop, snack bar, or at home, you can actually choose a healthy and nutritious breakfast combination. The following will analyze them one by one for groups such as office workers, teachers, drivers, workers, and the elderly.

1. Sedentary office workers

Characteristics: Administrative staff, office workers, engineers, etc., who sit in front of computers for long periods of time and have low activity levels.

The most common conditions for office workers are constipation and sore eyes. Therefore, it is recommended to choose high-fiber ingredients or lactic acid bacteria foods (such as yogurt, yogurt) for breakfast to help gastrointestinal motility and promote defecation; at the same time, pairing them with natural fruits and vegetables with good antioxidant properties (such as tomatoes rich in lycopene and eggs rich in lutein) can help relieve eye soreness and discomfort and protect vision.

Breakfast recommendations:

• Whole wheat toast with tomato and egg + low-fat milk

• Sweet potato + tea egg + lettuce salad

2. Teachers

Characteristics: Teachers, lecturers, drivers, etc. with moderate activity levels may need to get up early or have irregular working hours, and require a high level of concentration and physical strength!

Since more physical strength is required, it is recommended to choose foods rich in B group: oats, potatoes, bananas, etc., to help boost spirits and stabilize emotions, as well as foods rich in DHA (such as tuna) and lecithin (such as eggs, soy milk) to enhance brain function.

Breakfast recommendations:

• Potato with poached egg + sugar-free or low-sugar soy milk

• Tuna Sub + Sugar-Free Latte

• Oatmeal + milk + banana

3. Workers and laborers

Features: Need to carry heavy objects, prone to body aches, high chance of accidental injuries, high activity level!

Workers and laborers who are highly active exert a lot of physical effort, so it is recommended that they consume enough carbohydrates and protein to provide the body with the energy it needs, maintain muscle endurance, and avoid soreness. It is recommended to choose low GI staple foods, which are digested and absorbed slowly, can provide a longer feeling of fullness and are less likely to feel hungry (such as brown rice and buckwheat noodles). Protein can be selected from high-quality proteins such as meat, eggs, and soy products.

Breakfast recommendations:

• Brown rice balls (without fried dough sticks) + sugar-free or low-sugar soy milk

• Rice noodles or plain noodles + pork liver + boiled vegetables

4. Elderly people

Characteristics: Poor chewing ability, usually accustomed to getting up very early, small appetite, and slightly low activity level.

The elderly have poor chewing ability, digestive ability, and decreased bone density. Therefore, the principle of breakfast is to eat soft and easy-to-chew foods (cooked oats, porridge, noodles) + high-calcium ingredients (such as milk, dark vegetables, soy products, black sesame, dried fish, etc.).

The elderly have poor chewing ability, decreased digestion ability and bone density, so the principle of breakfast is recommended to be soft, easy to chew + high-calcium ingredients.

Breakfast recommendations:

• Oatmeal milk porridge + a spoonful of black sesame

• Vegetable and lean meat vermicelli + small square tofu

4 tips for a healthier breakfast

After reading the above breakfast recommendations, I believe you must have a certain understanding of how to eat breakfast. Next, we will further analyze the nutrients of breakfast with you. After reading these 4 principles, you will be a breakfast expert!

• Whole grains and tubers replace refined starches:

It is said that breakfast is a source of energy, so how can we do without carbohydrates? The carbohydrates in starchy foods can provide energy to the brain and body, helping to improve concentration, thinking ability and physical strength. Whole grains and root vegetables, such as oats, whole wheat bread, whole grain steamed bread, sweet potatoes, etc., are rich in fiber. After eating, the blood sugar in the body rises more slowly. Compared with easily digestible refined starches: white toast and bread, they can provide more satiety and are more resistant to hunger.

• Choose high-quality protein:

Amino acids, small molecules of protein, are important raw materials for brain neurotransmitters, endocrine hormones, and emotional hormones. Therefore, eating protein foods for breakfast can help the brain function better, stabilize emotions, and fight stress. In addition, research from the University of Missouri found that consuming enough protein at breakfast (35 grams of protein per breakfast) can help increase satiety and reduce the brain's appetite for high-fat and high-sugar foods. So remember to eat eggs, beans, fish, meat, and dairy products!

• Pairing with vegetables and fruits adds extra points:

The Ministry of Health and Welfare recommends a daily dietary fiber intake of 25-35g, but in Taiwan, more than 90% of people do not get enough dietary fiber. Nutritionists suggest that you add a serving of lettuce salad and a serving of high-fiber fruit, such as guava or apple, to your breakfast, which will give you an extra 5-10g of dietary fiber, about 1/3 of your daily intake.

Nutritionists suggest that you add a serving of lettuce salad and a serving of high-fiber fruit, such as guava or apple, to your breakfast, which will allow you to take in an extra 5 to 10 grams of dietary fiber, which is about 1/3 of your daily intake.

• Don’t forget to reduce oil and sodium:

Most commercially available breakfasts, such as sesame seed buns, fried dough sticks, scallion pancakes, croissants, etc., have a lot of fat added during the production process and cooking. Coupled with common breakfast ingredients such as meat floss, pickled cucumbers, fermented tofu, tomato sauce, etc., the whole day's fat and sodium intake may be too high, which may increase the chance of cardiovascular disease.

Key Summary

Office workers can eat high-fiber foods for breakfast, such as sweet potatoes and whole-wheat toast; people in other professions such as teachers and drivers can supplement more B vitamins; workers and other jobs that require high activity should remember to eat more protein to increase physical strength; the elderly have poor chewing ability, so they can eat soft foods such as oatmeal and supplement more calcium.