Eat breakfast, lower your cholesterol

By: Dani Dolin, Rite Aid Pharmacist and Diabetes Care Specialist at
Store 2605 in Kingwood, West Virginia

You’ve heard it from Mom.  You’ve heard it from your doctor.
“Breakfast is the most important meal of the day.” A recent study
published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition gives evidence
that maybe they’re right.

In this study, ten young, healthy women were divided into two groups.
One group ate breakfast between 7:00 and 8:00 am and the other did not
eat until 12:00 – 1:00 pm.  Both groups had a chocolate-covered cookie
between 10:30-11:00am.  For breakfast, the women ate whole grain
cereal with 2% milk.  They had their normal lunch and dinner with two
additional snacks for the rest of the day.  The women ate this way for
2 weeks, had a 2-week break, and then switched groups.

Researchers found that skipping breakfast was associated with higher
total and LDL (bad) cholesterol than those who ate breakfast.
Although the women’s weight did not change much, those who omitted
breakfast consumed more calories throughout the day. Overtime, it is
likely that those increased calories would lead to weight gain.  Those
who did not eat breakfast had higher insulin levels and were less
sensitive to the effects of insulin.  When the pancreas gives off
insulin after a person eats, the insulin helps to bring the glucose
(sugar) from the meal into the cells where it is either stored or used
as energy.  High levels of insulin and decreased insulin sensitivity
can mean that the body is becoming “resistant” to insulin and cannot
use it properly.

This study is interesting because it shows just how important
breakfast is.  Although this isn’t a “diabetes study,” there are
plenty of lessons to learn.  We know that diabetes and high
cholesterol go hand-in-hand.  Diabetes is definitely related to
insulin resistance and also to weight gain.  Each of these conditions
is a risk factor for heart attack and stroke.  In this study, those
who skipped breakfast had worse cholesterol, insulin resistance, and
ate extra calories that could lead to weight gain.  And the study was
only for 2 weeks!  Eating breakfast daily may be a great way to help
control your cholesterol, glucose levels, and waistline without taking
another medication.  The risk of heart attack and stroke may be
lowered in the process!

So maybe Mom and the doctor were right.  Although more research needs
to be done and longer studies conducted, this study should motivate
people with and without diabetes to eat breakfast.  In this study, the
women had bran flakes with 2% milk.  You could try a different whole
grain or fiber cereal- oatmeal, Cheerios, or Fiber One for example.
Try 2% milk, or even skim milk.  Remember that cholesterol and heart
disease are big threats to people with and without diabetes.  Another
study suggests that eating breakfast lowers your fat intake for the
day- also helping to reduce your risk.  Cereal is cheap, quick, and
easy to make.   Tomorrow morning, make a date with your bowl and
spoon.

References:

  1. Hamid R, Farshchi HR, Taylor MA, Macdonald IA.  Deleterious
effects of omitting breakfast on insulin sensitivity and fasting lipid
profiles in healthy lean women. American Journal of Clinical
Nutrition. 2005;81:388-396.

http://www.riteaiddiabetes.com/newsletter/article6.html#cholesterol

===
        "In a world where more than 10 million americans live with cancer -- we believe unity is strength, knowledge is power, and attitude is everything!"
              -- Livestrong, by Lance Armstrong