Breakfast Foods that Boost Your Day And Those That Don’t!

In the busy lives of modern workers, many skip or entirely skip breakfast. However, as research results have shown that eating breakfast not only benefits dieting but also helps to wake up the brain, more and more people are trying to eat breakfast, even if it’s just a light meal. However, depending on what you eat on an empty stomach in the morning, it can harm your health. Let’s look at foods that can be beneficial and harmful when consumed in the morning.

Good foods to eat in the morning

Apple

Apples are popular regardless of the season and are often eaten as a substitute for breakfast because they are easy to eat, even with the skin. Apples are low in calories and rich in carbohydrates, dietary fiber, and vitamins. Eating apples in the morning stimulates gastric activity, increasing the secretion of gastric juice, which helps digestion and bowel movements. In addition, the abundant dietary fiber in apples helps to prolong the feeling of fullness, making it effective for dieting.

Eggs

Eggs, also known as superfoods, are good to eat on an empty stomach. Eggs are rich in protein, minerals, and zinc, making them suitable for teenagers in their growth phase, working adults who start their day, and students who need to use their brains. In addition, eating eggs in the morning helps to maintain a feeling of fullness, reducing calorie intake throughout the day and helping with dieting. Eggs also have high efficacy in improving skin and brain health and strengthening the immune system.

Potatoes

Potatoes are good to eat on an empty stomach because the starch in potatoes coats the stomach and protects it. In addition, potatoes contain sufficient carbohydrates, making them suitable as a substitute for a morning meal. They are also rich in vitamins B, C, potassium, and iron, ideal for preventing and treating adult diseases such as cancer, hypertension, and digestive disorders. Vitamin C in potatoes is not destroyed even when heated so it can be boiled or cooked in various ways. Drinking freshly squeezed potato juice on an empty stomach is known to be effective in preventing and treating gastric ulcers.

Honey

Honey, which is sweet and warms the body, has a positive effect on the body even when consumed on an empty stomach in the morning. Eating honey as soon as you wake up helps to awaken the brain, activate brain activity, and promote serotonin hormone secretion, making you feel good. Honey also regulates blood pressure and helps recover from fatigue, making it a good food for a refreshing and energetic start to the day.

Carrots

Carrots are often perceived as an ingredient used in cooking, making it easy to eat lightly in the morning. However, due to the sweetness of carrots and the abundance of beta-carotene in the carrot peel, it can be eaten with the peel after washing it thoroughly. Carrots are rich in vitamins and beta-carotene, which are good for recovering from fatigue, so consuming them on an empty stomach in the morning can start your day energetically. The rich dietary fiber in carrots provides a feeling of fullness and helps smooth bowel movements, making it beneficial for dieting. If you don’t like carrots, one way is to blend them with apples and drink them.

Bad foods to eat in the morning

Bananas

Bananas are often considered an excellent food to eat in the morning because they are easy to eat and filling. However, this is incorrect information. Bananas help with bowel movements and are rich in vitamins. Still, the magnesium in bananas can increase the magnesium level in the blood when consumed on an empty stomach, disrupting the balance of potassium and magnesium in the body. This can put a strain on the cardiovascular system. Therefore, patients with low blood pressure and kidney disease should be cautious when eating bananas.

Oranges

Oranges are one of the fruits with high acidity. Along with oranges, fruits with high acidity, such as mandarins, lemons, and grapefruits, are not only harmful to health when eaten on an empty stomach in the morning but also at any other time. When the stomach is empty, there is no food, and the stomach acid is already secreted. Eating acidic fruits or foods at this time combines with gastric acid, causing intense stimulation to the gastric mucosa. This can lead to various diseases and symptoms, such as stomach ulcers and indigestion.

Milk

Like bananas, milk is also one of the foods many people eat as a substitute for breakfast. It is often consumed with simple snacks such as cereal or bread. Still, when consumed alone, milk containing calcium and casein stimulates gastric acid secretion, irritating the stomach wall. It also speeds up intestinal movements, causing nutrients to be excreted before they are fully absorbed, which can cause abdominal pain or diarrhea.

Tomatoes

Tomatoes are known to help prevent cardiovascular diseases, such as heart disease, diabetes, and osteoporosis, and are a representative diet with low calories. Tomatoes are also known to eliminate nicotine and heavy metals from the body due to the abundant tannic acid in tomatoes. However, when eaten on an empty stomach in the morning, tomatoes can increase stomach acidity, causing stomach discomfort and potentially leading to gastritis or gastric ulcers. It is advisable to be cautious when consuming tomatoes in the morning.

Coffee

Even for those who are busy and don’t have time to have a proper meal in the morning, some people still drink coffee. They drink coffee with high caffeine to wake up and energize themselves in the morning, but this is not a good habit for the body. When consuming coffee with a high amount of caffeine on an empty stomach, it excessively stimulates gastric acid secretion, causing damage to the stomach wall. Continuous damage to the stomach lining can lead to gastritis or gastric ulcers. It is important to be cautious when consuming coffee on an empty stomach.

By. Oh Hye In (press@daily.co.kr)