Does Good Food = Good Performance?

Do you ever find that after a decent breakfast, you can face anything??  No, I'm not talking about the Macchiato you down on the morning commute to keep you from falling asleep on the train to work!  You know when you've had a good breakfast as it really keeps you going-mind and  body until lunchtime.  Well, for children, breakfast is even more important!  We are always so determined to ensure they leave the house on a full tummy, but why?  What benefit does the morning meal hold and why is it termed 'the most important meal of the day'?

Various scientific studies have tried and tested the theory that good food equals good performance in children.  Establishing and maintaining a steady morning routine (critically, that means consuming a morning meal full of vitamins and nutrients to assist with brain function and development) before school and activities should ideally help performance in cognitive behaviour.  The main understanding in these studies in 2005 and 2013 is that food in the morning does exactly that.  It plays a significant role in cognitive ability in children.  In short, that's the way children perform and behave.  One set of findings came from a study (2013) that observed kindergarten/nursery children that were divided into two categories-those that sometimes ate breakfast and those that always ate breakfast.  The findings concluded that the IQ of the children consuming breakfast on a daily basis was higher than that of those consuming it less often.  This was even after taking several factors into account like; parental background, living location and gender. 

This information gives an insight into what we already know as parents and educators-children with food in their bellies produce greater results.  But doesn't that outcome vary in quality depending on what was eaten?  According to the 2005 study, yes it does!  The difference between those that ate a slow-release breakfast food like oatmeal and the group that ate an instant cereal that was low in fibre and contained added sugar, was clear.  The children that enjoyed the oatmeal were found to have a more enhanced result when it came down to their spatial memory and analysis of younger children showed an improvement in their auditory attention as well as their short term memory.

                                                     

Cardamom quinoa porridge with almond milk & pear

These studies are fascinating least of all because the breakfast food market is a huge money making industry that appeals to the masses.  Primarily, it's target market is children and that's where the high sugar content comes into it.  The products are marketed in such a way that it is often difficult to tell how much sugar is contained in a cereal.  Many cereals give the impression of being a healthy option but in reality are heavily ladled with sugar or honey and endorsed by favourite TV characters and personalities on the packaging. This cleverly promotes the indulgence in high sugar cereals and breakfast bars that provide half the daily calorie intake before lunchtime.  Thus contributing to our obesity endemic and my personal obsession with reading and dissecting the labels. 

But I digress!

Hard to say no sometimes?

What have you noticed in your classrooms, workshops, libraries or clubs?  The morning time isn't going to be the most productive time of day for everyone but for the majority of children that have enjoyed a good night's rest and a balanced morning meal, the foundation is already set for a great day ahead. 

A balanced meal can mean different things to different people.  After all, an investigation conducted by Nestle into what children eat for breakfast in Spain in September showed that 80% of parents felt their children were eating a healthy breakfast.  However, Nestle concluded that only 35% of children (aged 3-12) ate a breakfast consisting of fruit, cereals and dairy.

                                                

So the ideal breakfast menu for weekday mornings? Of course the meals need to be quick and easy and above all nutritious, giving the children a variety of slow release, tasty, high in fibre options.   The sweet tooth in my house (despite my attempt to 'start them off right', the sugar trap is hard to resist) is not that bad, but we are partial to yummy cake and biscuits!  We draw the line at sugary cereals though and since my eldest was in nappies, (he's ten now) Weetabix has been a firm favourite in my kitchen.  Alongside porridge which is versatile and seems to work well in all seasons, we opt for cereals with high fibre content and sure enough, the evidence confirms the children are focused and full for hours.

                                                

Stuck for healthy and handy breakfast ideas?  Take a look at this site where Wendy makes breakfast varied and appealing and also here where Grace from Eats Amazing shows it is possible to cut down on sugar and enjoy a tasty breakfast in a jiffy!

What are your go-to breakfasts and how do you encourage your young ones to enjoy a balanced morning meal?