Touted as "the most important meal of the day," people typically have a lot to say about breakfast. Some will tell you that you should have several food groups represented, while others suggest keeping it light. It's even trendy now to wait to break your fast until 12 p.m. But for most of us, breakfast is probably consistent, quick, and easy, or it's something you consider as part of your overall fitness goals. If you're in the latter camp and looking to boost your metabolism, data suggests trying out specific breakfasts, depending on whether you're a man or a woman.
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As Cleveland Clinic explains, your metabolism is the chemical process that occurs as your body converts food and drink into energy. While a fast metabolism doesn't automatically mean someone is thinner, someone with a fast metabolism or a fast basal metabolic rate "burns a lot of calories even at rest," the hospital notes.
In the new study published in Computers in Biology and Medicine, researchers from the University of Waterloo in Canada examined breakfast nutrition and metabolism specifically.
"Lifestyle is a big factor in our overall health," lead study author Stéphanie Abo, an Applied Mathematics PhD candidate, said in a press release outlining study findings. "We live busy lives, so it’s important to understand how seemingly inconsequential decisions, such as what to have for breakfast, can affect our health and energy levels. Whether attempting to lose weight, maintain weight, or just keep up your energy, understanding your diet’s impact on your metabolism is important."
When looking at this relationship using a sex-specific model that simulated the effect of dietary choices on metabolism, researchers found that the best breakfast varies between men and women. While data showed that men's metabolisms responded better to meals with high carbohydrates, including oats and grains, women's metabolisms benefited from meals that were higher in fat, like omelets and avocados.
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The study also addressed a gap in how men and women process fat, as there's typically "less research data on women's bodies than on men's bodies," study author Anita Layton, professor of applied mathematics and Canada 150 Research Chair in Mathematical Biology and Medicine, pointed out in the press release.
"Since women have more body fat on average than men, you would think that they would burn less fat for energy, but they don’t," Layton added. "The results of the model suggest that women store more fat immediately after a meal but also burn more fat during a fast."
Wondering what you should add to your grocery list? Men should focus on whole grains, which may include oatmeal or a healthy cereal, i.e. one with less than 5 grams of sugar per serving and a small list of ingredients, clinical dietitian Regina Shvets, of Sibley Memorial Hospital in Washington, D.C., told Johns Hopkins Medicine. Women, on the other hand, can focus on fats like nuts, seeds, smoked salmon, or avocado.
