What’s a healthy breakfast?
Pair a wholegrain with fruit or veg and some protein. Porridge with berries and beans on wholemeal toast both count. So can a full English, cooked the way the NHS recipe does it.
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What is a healthy breakfast?
Start with a wholegrain, then add fruit or veg and some protein. The NHS says a healthy breakfast is high in fibre and low in fat, sugar and salt.
Its own example is a wholegrain lower-sugar cereal with semi-skimmed milk and fruit sliced over the top.
Why three parts? Wholegrains and fruit bring fibre. Adults should aim for 30g a day, but most eat about 20g.
Fibre can help you feel full. So can protein like eggs or beans, which the NHS says can help you feel full for longer.
| Part | Pick one | Why it helps |
|---|---|---|
| Wholegrain | Porridge oats, wholemeal toast, plain wholegrain cereal, no-added-sugar muesli | Fibre, which can help you feel full. |
| Fruit or veg | Banana, berries, apple, tomatoes, mushrooms, peppers | Counts towards your 5 a day. |
| Protein or dairy | Eggs, baked beans, plain lower-fat yoghurt, semi-skimmed milk | Protein can help you feel full for longer. |
Sources: NHS: starchy foods; NHS: sugar; NHS: healthy eating; NHS: Eatwell Guide
Can’t fit all three in? The NHS says to get the balance right over a day or even a week, not at every meal.
Tomorrow, add the part your usual breakfast is missing.
Sweet healthy breakfast ideas
Start with oats or yoghurt, and let fruit do the sweetening.
Add sugar to your porridge? The NHS suggests a few chopped dried apricots or a sliced or mashed banana instead.
| Breakfast | Made with | Tip |
|---|---|---|
| Banana porridge | Porridge oats, semi-skimmed milk or water, banana | Mash the banana in to sweeten it. |
| Berry porridge | Oats made with water, plain low-fat yoghurt, berries | Frozen berries work. Defrost them first. |
| Summer oats | Whole oats, fruit, low-fat lower-sugar yoghurt | Mix it the night before. |
| Yoghurt and fruit | Plain natural yoghurt, chopped fruit | Plain lower-fat yoghurt usually has no added sugar. |
| Wheat biscuits and banana | Plain wheat biscuit cereal, semi-skimmed milk, banana | The NHS lists it as a lower-sugar cereal. |
| Muesli and apple | No-added-sugar muesli, milk, grated apple | Check the pack says no added sugar. |
Sources: NHS: sugar; NHS: starchy foods; NHS: dairy; NHS recipe: porridge
Like juice on the side? Keep it to one 150ml glass a day, with smoothies counted in. The NHS says these drinks are sugary and can damage your teeth.
To make a jar ahead, see overnight oats. For more on the sugar itself, see how much sugar a day.
Savoury healthy breakfast ideas
Savoury makes protein easy. Eggs and beans are both protein foods in the NHS Eatwell Guide.
Beans on toast is a strong pick. The NHS version stirs peppers, mushrooms and tomatoes into the beans. A portion has 10.9g of fibre, over a third of your 30g.
| Breakfast | Made with | Per portion |
|---|---|---|
| Beans on toast with veg | Reduced-salt and sugar beans, pepper, mushrooms, tomatoes, wholemeal toast | 247 kcal, 10.9g fibre |
| Mushrooms on toast | Mushrooms simmered in semi-skimmed milk, wholemeal toast | 185 kcal, 5.1g fibre |
| Super scrambled eggs | 2 eggs, grilled tomatoes and mushrooms, wholemeal toast | 255 kcal, 17g protein |
Sources: NHS recipe: beans on toast; NHS recipe: mushrooms on toast; NHS recipe: scrambled eggs
Beans count as one of your 5 a day at most, however many you eat. The veg you stir in counts separately.
Wondering about eggs? See eggs and cholesterol.
Don’t eat them? Try breakfast without eggs.
Can a full English be healthy?
Yes, if you cook it like the NHS healthier full English. A portion is one lean back bacon rasher, an egg, grilled tomatoes, mushrooms and beans. It comes to 262 kcal with 6g of fibre.
The big change is the meat. A plate of 2 sausages and 2 thin rashers is about 130g of processed meat.
If you eat more than 90g of red or processed meat a day, the NHS says to cut down to 70g. Too much red and processed meat probably raises your risk of bowel cancer. Processed meat can also be high in salt.
| Instead of | Try |
|---|---|
| 2 sausages and 2 rashers | 1 lean back bacon rasher and an egg |
| Streaky bacon | Back bacon with the fat trimmed |
| Frying the bacon and tomatoes | Grilling them |
| Mushrooms fried in oil | Mushrooms simmered in a little water |
| Standard baked beans | Reduced-salt and reduced-sugar beans |
Sources: NHS recipe: full English; NHS: meat
Then add more tomatoes. One medium tomato or 7 cherry tomatoes is one of your 5 a day.
Low fat breakfast options
Most of the ideas above are low in fat already. The fat creeps in through milk, spreads, cheese and the frying pan.
Six ways to make breakfast lower in fat
- Swap to 1% fat or skimmed milk on cereal and porridge.
- Choose plain lower-fat yoghurt, and check it isn’t high in added sugar.
- Use a small amount of lower-fat spread on toast, or none.
- Pick back bacon over streaky, and trim the fat.
- Grill bacon and tomatoes, and simmer mushrooms in a little water.
- Choose reduced-fat cheese if you have cheese on toast.
Sources: NHS: dairy; NHS: healthy eating; NHS: meat; NHS recipe: full English
Feeding a child under 5? The NHS says not to give them 1% or skimmed milk as a main drink.
Low fat isn’t always low sugar, so read the label. Our quick healthy breakfast guide shows how to check sugars per 100g.
Counting calories too? See low calorie breakfast ideas.
When to speak to a GP
Have special dietary needs or a medical condition? The NHS suggests asking a registered dietitian how to adapt the Eatwell Guide for you.
Speak to a GP if:
- You’re worried about your weight. The NHS says to ask your GP or a dietitian for advice.
- You keep losing weight without changing your diet or exercise routine.
- You’re losing weight and have other symptoms too. See a GP as soon as possible.
Losing weight without trying can be a sign of stress or a serious illness. The NHS says to see a GP just in case.