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Skipping breakfast may contribute to poor heart health

Category: Heart Health and Cholesterol

Nearly everyone is busy in the mornings. However, individuals who use this as an excuse to skip breakfast may want to make some time to get their blood pressure and cholesterol tested. A new study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition has found that those who don’t eat breakfast may be at risk for heart complications.

Australian researchers said that the long-term effects of not eating breakfast are not well understood. However, some experts have speculated that starting the day with a nutritious meal may promote many areas of health.

For their study, they administered questionnaires to more than 2,000 children between the ages of 9 and 15 in 1985. Researchers then administered a round of medical tests to the participants 20 years later.

The results of testing showed that individuals who skipped breakfast as both children and as adults had larger waistlines, and had higher cholesterol and fasting insulin levels than those who regularly ate breakfast.

“Skipping breakfast over a long period may have detrimental effects on cardiometabolic health,” the researchers wrote in their report. “Promoting the benefits of eating breakfast could be a simple and important public health message.”