Protein for breakfast could help with weight loss 1260x542
31 Mar 2010

Protein for breakfast could help with weight loss

2 mins to read
A study in the British Journal of Nutrition suggests consuming protein in the morning makes you feel fuller throughout day, and therefore less likely to reach for the chocolate, caffeine or crisps.


"Eat your breakfast, it's the most important meal of the day," is a phrase my mother was once very fond of screaming as I rubbed the sleep from my eyes and made a break for the freezer and my usual two slices of toast.

‘Breakfast', in her opinion, meant something substantial, like eggs or porridge, and toast alone, she believed, just didn't cut it. Well, now there's the science to back up her beliefs – at least when it comes to the eggs.

British researchers examined the diets of nine men given a normal (0.8g) and an additional amount of protein (+0.6g) at breakfast, lunch and dinner, studying their fullness, hunger and desire in between meals.

They found appetite responded differently when extra protein was added to breakfast – namely that respondents felt fuller. 

Protein & weight loss explained

"Protein is found throughout the body – in the hair skin, nails, teeth, bone, every internal organ and in fact, virtually every cell," explain Dr Joanna McMillan Price and Judy Davie in ‘Star Foods'. "Proteins are also used as chemical messengers, enzymes and nutrient carriers in the blood. It's easy to see why protein is so important in our diets."

High protein diets were all the rage in the 1960s, and then fell in popularity with the rise of low-fat diets. Paying good attention to protein intake, however, has recently been linked to more successful weight loss, as well as heart benefits – so protein is again in the good books when it comes to healthy living.

As McMillan Price and Davie comment, here are some ways protein works to help you shift weight:

  • Protein takes more energy (ie kilojoules) to digest and metabolise than carbs or fat
  • As mentioned, protein is very satiating and helps stomp out hunger pangs between meals
  • A diet higher in protein and lower in carbs reduces the glycaemic load, and lessens the spike in blood glucose. Hunger normally arises when blood glucose levels spike and then drop (which usually takes place around 1-2 hours after a meal). Lower blood glucose levels mean lower insulin levels and greater ability to burn fat.

Some of the best sources of protein

  • Chicken and turkey breast with the skin removed (preferably organic)
  • Free range or organic eggs
  • Fish, especially oily fish
  • Kangaroo and venison
  • Lean red meat
  • Low-fat milk and natural yoghurt
  • Seafood (except prawns, squid and fish roe)

Good vegetarian sources of protein

  • Tofu and tempeh
  • Chickpeas and lentils 

References available on request



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