The brain represents about 2% of body weight of an adult but it consumes 20% of the oxygen and glucose the body produces, even at rest. Glucose is the brain’s main fuel supply and is therefore necessary for mental performance.
Despite the well established fact that increased levels in glucose are associated with better cognition 10-30 % of people in Europe skip breakfast - the first opportunity to replenish the glucose levels in the blood after a long night of fasting.
We all know breakfast is important, but does it matter what type of breakfast? We enlisted one scientist and a classroom full of schoolchildren, to see if we could find out.
"increased levels in glucose are associated with better cognition"
On two consecutive days we got our children to test two different types of breakfast - an English breakfast of scrambled eggs and toast, and an American one of waffles and maple syrup.
We waited three hours for the breakfasts to take effect and then gave the children a frustrating game of swing ball to play. What we were looking for was not swing ball skill, but rather the ability to stay focused on the task in hand and not get frustrated with losing.
So which breakfast proved a winner? Staying power was more prominent after the English breakfast. Why? Because foods like eggs, toast, and oats have a low GI content which means the glucose is released more slowly into the blood keeping you focused for longer.
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