Why is a nutritious Breakfast important for people with Diabetes?
Your blood glucose response is most striking after breakfast, compared to other mealtimes1,2.This may be due to impaired insulin sensitivity resulting in inadequate suppression of hepatic glucose output in the morning hours; hepatic glucose production has been found to peak after an overnight fast.3 Making appropriate breakfast choices can thus be metabolically beneficial to you.
Breakfast quality makes a difference. Replacing traditional carbohydrate-rich breakfast choices (like white bread, rice, porridge or noodles) with slow release carbohydrate & high protein choices (such as rolled oats, beans) could significantly reduce blood sugar not just after the meal but, also post lunch in a phenomenon called “second meal response4,5".
As the very name suggests, breakfast is your first opportunity to fuel up for the working day after a long overnight fast. Assembled right, this meal offers a fantastic opportunity to pack in great nutrition. Improved concentration and mental alertness are associated with eating a nutrient enriched breakfast.6And, if you are battling diabetes, a well-designed morning meal should allow you to pack in up to a third of nutrient allowance, allowing for better spacing of food portions through the remaining meals and snacks.
With intermittent fasting the new diet rage in town, the scientific debate goes on and on – some studies find that eating breakfast helps with weight control, while others state it may not contribute much to weighing in lighter. But, evidence is building up to show that breakfast skippers succumb to hunger pangs mid-day and overeat in compensation at the next meal or snack, piling on the calories that results in weight gain.7When carefully controlled and eaten at home, breakfast is protective against weight gain.8
Tips To Achieving A Better Breakfast
In our super busy world, it takes a bit of planning to achieve a better & nutritious breakfast.
Here are some tips: (click to expand)
Create a 20-minute morning window in your morning schedule to assemble a better breakfast.
- Aim to eat up to third of your food allowance for the day at breakfast. Keep to your allocated breakfast portions each day as overeating causes sugar to spike and undereating may trigger a blood sugar low.
- As breakfast quality matters, here are some tips to plate up right each day:
- Start with a wholegrain low glycemic index (GI) staple choice like unrefined, multi-grain bread, cereal, noodle or oatmeal.
- Add on a substantial portion of protein with lean or low-fat choices like egg, milk, cheese, yogurt or beans.
- Top up with veggies and fresh fruit to increase nutrient values.
- Be careful to limit added cane or table sugar hidden in foods as they add on empty calories.
- Remember to also cut back on salt and fat, especially saturated kind.
Consider Using Diabetes Specific Formulas (DSF) As Breakfast!
If you are time strapped or find assembling a nutritious breakfast too hard to do, then, for convenience and control, replace your traditional high-carb, high GI usual breakfast meal choices with a glucose-friendly Diabetes Specific Formula!
Scientifically formulated with a slow release carbohydrate blend and low in GI, DSF delivers a known amount of calories and carbohydrates, and such swap may help you flatten blood sugar spikes post meal. In addition, it delivers 14 vitamins and 14 minerals in every serve making it a very nutrient-dense choice.
Remember to ask your Doctor or Dietitian . Ask how to swap out your usual breakfast choices with a DSF to prevent a post meal high or low. What you need for success is a quick tip on the portion to consume at breakfast.
Here are some practical tips to make DSF work for you:
- Do a Partial Meal Replacement. If a favorite meal choice sending your blood sugar out of whack? Eat only half the portion and top up the remaining allocated calories for the meal (if any) with a DSF.
- Replace an Entire Meal. Want to lose weight? How about giving up your regular plate of economic fried beehoon with fried chicken & egg (527 calories*) for a controlled portion of diabetes specific formula to save 302 calories immediately. Sustained over time, you will see the extra pounds peel off. Or, is better post breakfast blood sugar your goal? Give up your high GI noodle soup for the slow release low GI DSF instead.
Jazz up your Breakfast with new Delicious & Nutritious Glucerna® Recipes
Someone famous once said “you can’t have your cake and, eat it.” But with Glucerna® you can. It tastes like a treat but, does not behave like one. Click through below to below Glucerna® ’s new healthy and easy recipes whipped up with nutritious ingredients to add variety to jazz up your breakfast!
Reference:
* Source:portion of economic fried beehoon with 1piece fried chicken wing and 1 fried egg. Energy source: HPB’s ‘Energy & Nutrent Composition of Food’ website.
1 Source:Carroll et al. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2003; 88:5248-5254
2 Source:Monnier L et al. Diabetes care. 2002;25”737-41
3 Source:Boden G, Chen X, Urbain JL. Diabetes. 1996;45:1044-50
4 Source:Jenkins DJ et al. Slow release dietary carbohydrate improves second meal tolerance. Am J Clin Nutr. 1982 Jun;35(6):1339-46.
5 Source:Park YM et al. A high-protein breakfast induces greater insulin and glucose-dependent insulinotropic peptide responses to a subsequent lunch meal in individuals with type 2 diabetes J Nutr. 2015 Mar;145(3):452-8. doi: 10.3945/jn.114.202549.
6 Source:Kennedy DO et al. Cognitive and Mood Effects of a Nutrient Enriched Breakfast Bar in Healthy Adults: A Randomised, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Parallel Groups Study. Nutrients. 2017 Dec 7;9(12). pii: E1332.
7 Source:Rubin R. Does Skipping Breakfast Lead to Weight Loss or Weight Gain? JAMA. 2019 May 1.
8 Source:Brikou D et al. Breakfast consumption and weight-loss maintenance: results from the MedWeight study. Br J Nutr. 2016 Jun;115(12):2246-51.
