A healthy start into the day

As the saying goes, “breakfast is the most important meal.” But it does not mention what this should include. A good breakfast needs to supply you with lasting energy to prevent severe hunger pangs later on. But we’re not always hungry first thing in the morning and often don’t have time to eat properly.

The classic breakfast

Muesli is always a convenient choice. Ideally you can create your own version, because ready-made mixes, such as cornflakes, often have lots of sugar. Good choices for muesli include oats and other cereals that provide plenty of fibre and important minerals. It’s best if you soak them in cow milk, soy milk, or yoghurt, or whatever you prefer, as a way of adding important proteins. And you can always cut up some fresh fruit to give you extra vitamins, or mix in seeds and kernels, such as linseed, chia seeds, and psyllium seeds, which are especially good for digestion. For the best effect on the digestive tract, you should let the seeds soak overnight in water or milk.

Bread and spreads

Those of us who like a crunchier breakfast may opt for bread instead. Here, wholemeal bread, crispbread, or pumpernickel are very good choices as a long-lasting source of energy. You can have cheese or sausage as your source of protein, but not everyone likes to eat such foods first thing in the morning. Ever tried avocado toast? It's easy to spread ripe avocado on your bread, and it has many unsaturated fatty acids. But it also has a lot of calories, and we therefore recommend spreading it thinly.

Although croissants may be delicious, they have lots of saturated fatty acids, not to mention sugar and simple carbohydrates. In other words, they are not a good source of long-lasting energy and should be consumed in moderation.

Morning snack instead of breakfast

Don't worry if you find the thought of eating first thing in the morning repulsive. But we recommend that you do have a snack at some point in the morning when you start to feel hungry. Be sure to at least drink something when you get up, because we are often dehydrated then, and drinking a glass of water or a cup of tea will help us restore the right balance.

Although coffee is a good choice, you shouldn't drink it on an empty stomach because the cholorogenic acid can cause heartburn. We therefore recommend that you add some milk or have it as part of a meal.

Contribution to your health

For persons insured under a COMPLETA PRAEVENTA or OPTIMA plan, SWICA contributes towards nutrition analyses and advice by recognised experts and dieticians and towards courses on thoughtful and healthy nutritional habits.

10.05.2017