Not Eating Breakfast could affect your Heart

Doing cardiovascular exercise, watching your fats, eating healthy, and not smoking or drinking is all important in having a strong and healthy heart.  A group of United States researchers have published a study that associates cardiac problems with leaving out the first meal of the day: breakfast.

The news was published in the scientific magazine “Circulation”, which is where Harvard’s School of Public Health conducted the study on 27,000 mend, all between the ages of 45 and 82 years, for a period of 16 years.

Fatal attacks

During this time, there were 1500 heart attacks that could have been fatal.  To be precise, individuals that skipped breakfast were 27% more likely to suffer from cardiac problems than those that started the day with breakfast.

In order to reach these results, the study eliminated other factors, like smoking and exercise.  The conclusion reached was that a lack of breakfast created “extra tension” on the heart.

Eat when you wake up

For one of the researchers on this study, Doctor Leah Cahill, the key was to eat a good breakfast, or to snack well at the beginning of the day “eat in the morning when you wake up, preferably within the first hour.  Results show that something is better than nothing, but it’s best to eat something healthy and balanced”, was what she said.

For her, it’s clear that waiting until lunch without eating anything in the morning could exhaust the body over the course of time.  That’s why it’s not strange that diseases or conditions appear, like high blood pressure, obesity and diabetes.

It must be confirmed

Another respected voice is that of nutritionist Victoria Taylor of the British Heart Foundation, who confirms that this study’s conclusions are not conclusive.

This is because the study focused on men older than 45 years of age.  More studies needed to be performed to categorize if the type breakfast had the same impact on heart health in different groups of people.

What it did clarify, however, is that “a filling and healthy breakfast could make a mid-day cake less tempting”.  Whole grain toast or cereal, like oats with low fat milk, area great way to start the day.  Try sliced bananas or dried fruit on top, and you’ll be ready to enjoy the day before even leaving the house”, she stated.

Weight loss

This study can be combined with a prior study that we have also talked about in another post, which directly relates breakfast to weight loss, which was performed by a group of Israeli students.

So remember, it’s not good to eat a late breakfast to prevent consuming extra calories.  Even though it doesn’t sound logical, the later you eat, the hungrier you will be and the more food you will eat.

It’s best to eat breakfast right after waking up.

Revised by: Dra. Loredana Lunadei on 12/29/2017

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