Weight Loss Myth #2

Hopefully last week’s post got you thinking!  Well, there’s plenty more where that came from. I love writing about these things! Myths about weight loss are everywhere – being repeated over and over again without an ounce of proof.  Here’s another myth that I hear from patients all the time. I sympathize, as I believed it too for a long time. Not because of any study that was done or research that was presented – simply because I had heard it so long and from so many sources that it seemed like an well-known fact.  

Myth #2: Breakfast is the most important meal of the day:  This myth has actually been disproven in a number of medical studies.  There’s nothing special about breakfast – it doesn’t “jump start” your metabolism or prevent you from overeating later in the day.  In fact the word breakfast just means to break your fast (the time period when you are sleeping during which you are technically fasting).  This can be done at 6am or at noon – it still accomplishes the same thing! Now some people are hungry in the morning and others aren’t – that’s likely simply due to individual variation and personal habits and preferences.  Furthermore, people that eat later at night tend to be hungrier first thing in the morning – so snacking before bed can actually set you up to eat more the next day. Back to those pesky hormones that regulate food storage and usage!  The people that promote the breakfast myth are typically the same ones that promote the snacking myth – namely those people that profit off of convenience foods (the things we typically eat for breakfast and snacks!) Hmmm…

Check back with us next week for another weight loss myth. Until then…

be strong – be healthy – be happy

Courtney Younglove, M.D.