Cancer Research Group Offers Five Quick,

No-Cook Breakfast Menus

WASHINGTON, D.C. — According to a national nutrition and health survey, one in three American teens start the school day without breakfast, which can affect academic performance. Nutrition experts at the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) this week warned that lack of energy and lower test scores are not the whole story.

Studies show that children and adolescents who skip the morning meal have higher body fat than those who eat breakfast. And that, according to AICR Registered Dietitian Alice Bender, can set kids up for serious health problems in the future.

“Skipping breakfast is one of several unhealthy habits that can put young adults on track to becoming overweight or obese older adults.” says Ms Bender. “As our obesity rate continues to increase, we’ll see more people at high risk for chronic diseases, such as cancer, heart disease, and type 2 diabetes.”

Parents know that breakfast is important, but busy schedules and hectic mornings have a way of quashing even the best intentions. The challenge is finding the right combination of healthy choices — and the time to prepare and eat them.

To help moms and dads send their teens and children to school with a healthy start, AICR has developed some fast and easy healthy breakfast ideas and tips for getting breakfast on the menu more often.

A good start, Ms Bender says, is for parents to get in the breakfast habit. When parents have a morning meal, kids are more likely to eat breakfast, too. Healthy choices are important, but keep it simple: a whole grain ready-to-eat cereal with fruit and milk or plain instant oatmeal with raisins and yogurt take less than five minutes to have on the table.

Ask your children and teens for menu ideas and invite them to help shop and even prepare some things on the weekend. Make extra whole grain waffles on Sunday morning and freeze the leftovers for a quick toaster meal later in the week.

AICR’s website www.aicr.org and its brochure “The New American Plate for Breakfast” are filled with practical tips, recipes, and tools that can help you make breakfast quicker, healthier —and a part of your family’s life, every day.

These meals take just a few minutes to prepare and can be eaten at home or on the way to school:

1. Breakfast trail mix (see recipe below) + reduced-sodium string cheese

2. Peanut butter on brown rice cakes + apple (whole or slices) + 1 cup milk

3. Breakfast smoothie (berries, yogurt or silken tofu, 100 percent juice) + whole grain mini-bagel

4. Breakfast fruit wrap — whole-wheat tortilla with ricotta cheese, a little fruit spread, sliced strawberries, and chopped nuts.

5. Whole wheat pita bread with hummus, fresh fruit or a small box of raisins

Breakfast Trail Mix

1/2 cup unsalted peanuts

1/2 cup unsalted almonds

1/2 cup dried apple pieces

1/2 cup raisins

1/2 cup oat circles

1/2 cup bran cereal flakes

Put all the ingredients into big bowl. Stir well with wooden spoon. Divide into six equal amounts in small resealable plastic bags.

Makes 6 servings.

Per serving: 210 calories, 12 g total fat (1.5 g saturated fat), 24 g carbohydrate, 7 g protein, 4 g dietary fiber, 50 mg sodium.