Breakfast or brunch is the first meal of the day for most people…

It should set us up for the day and give us the energy to work or play until our next meal… What we start the day with also varies around the world and also maybe depends on the temperature…I mean if it is freezing cold and snowing we probably wouldn’t want a smoothie a nice warming bowl of porridge, breakfast casserole, garlicky oats with a masala egg something to warm the cockles of your heart as when it is bitter cold you feel hungrier so some slow-burning carbs are just what you need…

In many western countries where the temperatures for most of the year are a little more temperate where parents are busy it is often cereals and oat bars which aren’t the healthiest of options…due to high concentrations of sugars and corn starch.

There are the ever-growing murmurs from scientists as to the fact that cereals contain traces of weedkiller…

From oats to cheerios and soft baked cookies…facts are emerging as to the levels of glyphosate…a chemical identified as probably carcinogenic by the World Health Organization come on the heels of a major study published in JAMA Internal Medicine that found a significant reduction in cancer risk for individuals who ate a lot of organic food.

The diets of 69,000 people were tracked and 4 years later there was found to be a 25% reduction in cancers among those groups…

Studies have to involve large sections of society and have to be tracked and monitored over long periods of time to give a reasonable picture of accuracy …I am interested in the findings of the next one due to increased publicity in glyphosate as to whether those figures are lower…Put simply I am interested as to whether manufacturers of cereals and the consumer are listening and acting on findings…

Are continental Breakfasts any healthier…?

Continental breakfast consists of baked goods, jams, fruits, marmalades, processed cheeses, and meats, and coffee…Of course, there are some variations but generally, they are a mixture of some of the above…

Baked goods….croissants, rolls, bread, pastries…

If you want to know why I never eat commercial bread,  it’s because of the additives, preservatives, dough conditioners, and other toxic ingredients…some commercially produced bread contains human hair, hog hair, duck or chicken feathers from which by using strong chemicals to extract a protein and produce E920 otherwise known as L Cysteine which helps the bread dough to rise faster…

Some bakers use a synthetic made one which is used is not always clear on the label…Yes, we are back to labelling…

Commercially baked bread has no nutrition value unless it is stated on the label…If they are using refined white flour it is fortified with synthetic vitamins that are poorly absorbed. If they are using whole grains, the vitamins and minerals are all bound up in the bran where it is unavailable unless it has been properly prepared.

Processed cheese and meat…

Did you know that eating more than 700 grams (raw weight) of red meat a week increases your risk of bowel cancer? Or that the risk of developing bowel cancer goes up 1.18 times for every 50 grams of processed meat eaten per day?

The World Health Organization (WHO)has classified processed meats including ham, bacon, salami, and frankfurts as a Group 1 carcinogen (known to cause cancer) which means that there’s strong evidence that processed meats cause cancer. Eating processed meat increases your risk of bowel and stomach cancer. Red meat, such as beef, lamb, and pork, has been classified as a Group 2A carcinogen which means it probably causes cancer.

Processed Cheese… is not 100% cheese. Most of the time it hovers around 50% cheese, sometimes more and sometimes less, but at a base level, processed cheese is real cheese cut with other, non-cheese ingredients. Those extra ingredients can include salt, food dyes, preservatives, extra dairy, emulsifiers, or other artificial ingredients. These ingredients are added to melted, pasteurized cheese, which is then converted to a sliced solid, a jarred sauce or a spread,

That is only the bread, meats and cheese…I haven’t touched on the number of sugars in jams and spreads which just leaves the fresh fruit…which means 3 out of the 5 groups almost certainly contain chemicals, sugars, salt, and flavour enhancers.

Asian Breakfasts…

 

Consist of steamed rice, noodles, miso soup, grilled fish, pickled and fresh vegetables, raw herbs, shallots, spring onions, ginger, garlic, and of course chillies either fresh or in a dip.

Dim sum, Breakfast rice, omelette and rice, rice porridge with a poached egg and spring onions…

Breakfast in Asia is a revelation as almost anything goes…Although a protein is generally eaten for breakfast the ratio of protein to raw/steamed vegetables is about 3-1…

People in Southeast Asia drink their milk in the morning. However, people in Southeast Asia are said to consume less milk than Europeans or Americans. As you can see from the list of breakfast menu I have detailed, many of the meals contain coconut milk, but not milk from animals. Coconut milk is more of a staple, especially among adults. People consume a lot of tea, coffee, fruit and plant juices, and herbal drinks. In Indonesia, they have “Jammu,” or fresh traditional herbal drinks taken very early in the morning to prevent and treat health problems.

Are rice noodles healthy? Yes, they are, so long as you cook them in healthy ways. While rice flour is a rich source of carbs, it is actually a simple starch and a good source of glucose that your body can easily turn into energy. Unlike brown rice, white rice does not contain anti-nutrients such as phytates and lectins. Rice noodles are also gluten-free, affordable, sustainable, and quite suitable for vegetarians and vegans. You cannot call them particularly nutritious, but they become quite healthy when served with foods such as fish and vegetables.

Overall I would say the Asian Breakfasts are healthier but whatever you eat moderation has to be applied…If you constantly eat foods each and every day which have a constantly high percentage of sugars, fats, and chemicals then it will affect your health and well being …We also need to be mindful as if we apply moderation to each meal every day but are consuming chemical-laden foods then the chemical and carcinogens will build-up and our health will suffer…

I don’t like being the bearer of bad news but I feel that so many cereals are fed to children it is no wonder that their health and teeth suffer as a direct result.

If children are introduced to a variety of foods from when they first start to eat their palate and their desire to try anything will be the result…They may not like everything they try but that doesn’t matter the fact that they have tried it is good and as their taste buds develop they may like it as they get older.

I know I go on and on about cooking from scratch, growing your own where possible, buying local produce, and knowing where your fish and meat originate from but cheap imported meat from countries where food standards are not high creates all kinds of problems with our bodies and our wellbeing…We cannot keep buying cheap foods and expect to stay healthy.

It is far better to eat a lovely piece of meat which is sustainably reared and eat lots of vegetable meals for other meals and be healthier both in the body and the knowledge that we are doing what we can to benefit the planet we live on…

Thank you for reading this and please we have to change our lifestyles and eating habits for the benefit of our families and the planet.

About Carol Taylor: 

Enjoying life in The Land Of Smiles I am having so much fun researching, finding new, authentic recipes both Thai and International to share with you. New recipes gleaned from those who I have met on my travels or are just passing through and stopped for a while. I hope you enjoy them.

I love shopping at the local markets, finding fresh, natural ingredients, new strange fruits and vegetable ones I have never seen or cooked with. I am generally the only European person and attract much attention and I love to try what I am offered and when I smile and say Aroy or Saab as it is here in the north I am met with much smiling.

Some of my recipes may not be in line with traditional ingredients and methods of cooking but are recipes I know and have become to love and maybe if you dare to try you will too. You will always get more than just a recipe from me as I love to research and find out what other properties the ingredients I use contain to improve our health and wellbeing.

Exciting for me hence the title of my blog, Retired No One Told Me! I am having a wonderful ride and don’t want to get off, so if you wish to follow me on my adventures, then welcome! I hope you enjoy the ride also and if it encourages you to take a step into the unknown or untried, you know you want to…….Then, I will be happy!

Thank you once again for reading this post I hope you all have a fabulous week and stay safe these are troubling times xx