Focus
- Breakfast gives children and teens the energy they need to play, learn, remember, and solve problems.
- A healthy breakfast includes a balanced selection of the 5 food groups.
- Healthy breakfast options include cereal, oatmeal, cereal, rice, vegetables, low-sugar cereal, boiled eggs, omelets, whole-wheat toast, fruit, and milk.
Why a healthy breakfast is important
Breakfast gives your child the energy they need to start their day. If your child has a healthy breakfast, they can focus on playing, learning, remembering, and solving problems because their attention isn’t distracted by hunger. A healthy breakfast can actually make your child do better in school.
Children who eat breakfast are more likely to:
- Do better in school than those who skip breakfast
- Have better mental health than those who don’t eat breakfast
- Maintain a healthy weight by eating less unhealthy foods.
What does a healthy breakfast look like?
A healthy breakfast should include a balanced diet from the 5 food groups.
These include fruits, vegetables and nuts, grains and cereals, dairy products and dairy products, and meat and fish. When children eat these foods for breakfast, they have more energy throughout the morning. Your child may want to choose from porridge, oatmeal, uncooked muesli, rice or rice porridge, low-sugar cereal, boiled eggs, omelets, baked beans, vegetables, toast, pancakes, fruit and yoghurt.
Healthy breakfast ideas to encourage breakfast snacks
You are a great role model for food. This means you can encourage your child to eat breakfast by showing them that breakfast is delicious and an important part of your day. You can also talk to your child about the benefits of breakfast.
Here are some other breakfast ideas to encourage healthy eating habits in the morning:
Make breakfast a time to sit down and eat together with your child. If your child says they are not hungry in the morning, try making a healthy breakfast with milk, yogurt, and fruit like a banana instead of a traditional “eat” breakfast.
Give your child a small meal at home, such as a small bowl of oatmeal or cereal, or a piece of fruit. Then give your child a healthy snack before school starts, such as yogurt and fruit, or a hard-boiled egg.
If you are busy in the morning or have to wake up early and don’t have time for breakfast, set your child’s alarm clock 10 minutes earlier, or prepare breakfast the night before. For example, leave the butter in a bowl overnight and place it on a towel or table, and let your child add milk in the morning. If your child is picky about breakfast, find ways to make it more enjoyable. For example, you could try adding low-fat ricotta cheese to whole-wheat toast or spreading banana slices and honey on toast. You could also try baked eggs or brown rice with steamed vegetables.
If your older child refuses to eat breakfast, try not to make it too much. Your child may be acting out to show independence. You might consider having your child grab a fruit or snack on the way to school. Or encourage your child to choose their own healthy breakfast while you’re shopping.
