Nutrition, academic performance linked to healthy morning meal

    For many students, the routine is not uncommon: roll ot of bed, rush to class, and skip breakfast entirely — save for little more than a cup of coffee. But this daily ritual (or, rather, lack thereof) may contribute to more than just a hectic morning.
    Nutrition experts such as Dr. Christina Economos, associate professor at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, warn that skipping breakfast can have negative consequences on weight and academic performance. It is part of the larger problem of college students' questionable nutritional habits.
    It is no secret that college students are frequently sleep deprived, so when one has to choose between breakfast and sleep, breakfast often gets pushed to the wayside.
    Sophomore Sam Sazer said he usually skips breakfast because his first class is at noon this semester. "Between sleep and breakfast, sleep wins out," Sazer said.
    According to a recent article in the Los Angeles Times, less than 30 percent of college students get the recommended eight or more hours of sleep a night. Experts like Economos, however, warn that skipping breakfast for an extra 15 minutes of shuteye is no way to get more energy for the day ahead.
    "When people [skip breakfast] and their blood sugar or blood glucose levels fall overnight and they wake up and try to perform on low blood glucose, they tend to get really irritable, and they're so hungry that the next time they do eat, they might overeat," Economos said.
    Forgoing bowls of cereal or scrambled eggs can also adversely affect academic performance. "It depends on how long you're going to try to perform with low blood glucose levels, but your brain certainly relies on a certain level of circulating blood glucose or blood sugar, and when that starts to dip, you can't focus [or] maintain that focus for long periods of time," Economos said.
    Sophomore Robyn Jong said that breakfast usually helps her feel energized in the morning, even if it comes at the cost of a few minutes of sleep. "If I don't eat breakfast, then I tend to fall asleep in class," she said.
    Senior Claire Stevenson says she also never skips breakfast. "I'm always hungry when I wake up," she said in an e-mail. "You're going to start thinking about food, and your mission, biologically, is going to be to get food, so it's a real distraction."
    Other students, like sophomore Austin Glassner, don't prioritize their morning meal. "I skip breakfast all the time," Glassner said. "I always eat late at night, so I'm never really hungry when I wake up, and it holds me over until lunchtime."
    For students like sophomore Katrina Knisely, breakfast is practically sacred. One semester, Knisely made it to Dewick every morning by eight so that she had time for a "relaxing" meal before her 8:30 calculus class. But for those who can't stop hitting the snooze button, there are more portable solutions.
     "During the school year I try to make sure I eat a full breakfast," sophomore Aaron Bartel said in an e-mail. "I would rather be a little sleepier and avoid hunger. If I don't have enough time to sit down, I will just drop by a dining hall and leave with a mug of coffee and bagel to eat on the way to class."
    Economos stressed that students should avoid falling into a pattern of skipping breakfast and at the very least should follow Bartel's strategy and have something small to eat in the morning, even if they are in a rush. Otherwise, they run the risk of frequently overeating at lunch or dinner. "Small, frequent eating is actually better," she said.
    Economos added that breakfast is only part of the problem when it comes to college students' nutrition and health habits.
    "A lot of times, students sacrifice their nutrition for other things that feel more pressing at the time, like studying or socializing, or doing laundry or something they might not have been responsible for earlier," Economos said.
    Students often replace the calories they would get from healthful foods eaten at home, like fruits, vegetables and low-fat dairy, with calories obtained from late-night snacks, salty or fatty foods and alcohol.
    Economos said that the so-called "freshman 15" is actually usually closer to a five-pound weight gain over the course of freshman year. "It's still significant for a lot of students," she said. "And the weight often remains with students through the rest of their college years."
    "It's something to be really aware of when you arrive at school and try to remain in energy balance by consuming the same [number] of calories that you expend," Economos said. College students are often less active than they were in high school, particularly if they no longer participate in organized sports.
    Students do play a role in shaping the university's food options, according to Economos, who encouraged students to be aware of this. "The more students request certain foods, the more [likely] those demands will be met, so students really need to speak up," she said.
    Luckily for junior Yein Kim, the dining halls are doing fine with her most important meal of the day.
    "Breakfast is the only meal I actually like here," she said.