Photo courtesy ponce photography on Pixabay
By Elizabeth Meyer, RD, LRD
Raise your hand if you love mornings.
Raise your hand if your mornings are calm, everything comes together just right, and you’re always out the door with time to spare and smiling kids who have eaten a well-balanced breakfast. Ok. I know I lost some of you there. I don’t mind mornings. I even get excited about drinking my coffee the night before. Breakfast is always a scramble – I’m thankful for schools serving breakfast 😊
Rarely am I out the door with my coffee and a smile on my face. Or my daughters. There’s typically some yelling (on my end) poking along, last minute trips back in the house for a trumpet or a book or who knows what (usually on Harper’s end – though I’m pretty good at this one too).
Even when my daughter is at her dad’s and it’s just me. BY MYSELF, I’m somehow in a mad dash to get out the door. It’s so hard to get out of bed!! Especially since I’m already over winter (I realize it’s way too early for me to be saying this out loud but I am). My age classifies me as an adult. My actions don’t always line up with that.
I really don’t want to care about breakfast. I’m a mom and a dietitian, so I should, right?
It feels like one more thing. Do we really need it??
Everything we’ve ever learned (and I mean ever) points to yes. I like to argue at times, and I’ve tried arguing this. But I really do think it’s a good idea for us to eat breakfast. That absolutely does not mean it needs to be an elaborate breakfast that you’ve spent hours looking at Pinterest for inspiration. Just something to get the fire started for the day. For me, string cheese and Triscuits. I can eat it on my way to work, or at my desk. I’m getting carbs, protein and fat. What more could I ask for!?! At least I ate.
As I said, my daughter has the Fargo Public Schools to thank for her breakfast. Not because we don’t have food available. But more because she’s 12 and likes to meet her friends for breakfast (and remember all that yelling and trying to get out of the house). I don’t even know what they serve at school, but I have full faith its better than skipping breakfast.
Now some of you are saying “Hey dummy, I’ve been skipping breakfast for the last 23 years and I’m just fine!!” I’m not going to argue that, nor am I going to convince you to eat breakfast. Do what works for you.
But those of you who are in charge of kids in the morning, feed them! Or have the school feed them if that’s possible!!! Kids need fuel if we want them to be able to soak up all that knowledge. When I’m hungry, all I can thing about is how hungry I am and when I’ll be able to eat. Kids get distracted, crabby, tired and a whole lot of other special things when they are hungry. Send the kids to school with full tummies (or have them fill up when they get to school). It might not give life changing results, but it might make for a better day and some good habits to carry into adulthood.
Elizabeth is a registered dietician and wellness education specialist at Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Dakota. She blogs for OYT once a month.