6 “Healthy” Brekkies which make you Sleepy

Many of our typical breakfast choices actually contain a LOT of sugar. When we consume sugar, it gives us a natural energy spike, we feel great for a short amount of time, but then it sends our insulin levels (the hormone that controls our blood sugar) into over drive and we start to feel sleepy, lethargic and irritable.

5g of carbs is the equivalent of 1 teaspoon of sugar – I’ve calculated the equivalent of how many teaspoons of sugar are in each of the following breakfasts – You may be shocked!

12 teaspoons of sugar 1,757 kJ’s Iku Maple & Spelt Granola Many varieties of muesli & cereal – especially toasted muesli and granola, are not only baked with a mixture of oil, honey, maple syrup or sugar but also contain a large amount of dried fruit, which contains sugar as well. It may seem like a big bowl of nuts, seeds & goodness but as you can see the sugar content is very high! 17 teaspoons of sugar 2,570 kJ’s McCafe Banana Bread Quite a deceptive term. In my opinion, there is no difference between banana bread and banana cake. If anything the serving size of banana bread is actually larger than a serve of banana cake. Did you know a slice of standard banana bread has more kJ's, fat and carbs than a cheeseburger? And that's before you toast it and lather it with butter! 16 teaspoons of sugar 2,416kJ’s Large Fruit Salad & Yogurt Bowl Ok so fruit salad itself probably won't make you fat. However it does have a very high sugar content and basically no protein. Therefore, it will probably be about 30 minutes until you start to get peckish and sneak into the office cookie jar for a mid morning-snack! 25 teaspoons of sugar 2,650 kJ’s Brekkie to GoGo Make it yourself and know exactly what goes in, no dramas at all. HOWEVER, order a smoothie out and its likely to have a nice concoction of fruit puree's (maybe not even 100% real fruit), ice cream/sweet yogurt, full cream milk, honey and muesli - making it a lovely concoction equaling CARB OVERLOAD. 10 teaspoons of sugar 1,439 kJ’s Homemade with butter and jam Yep that's right, even 2 slices of wholemeal bread has the equivalent sugar to 6 teaspoons out of the jar. That's just the bread. If you butter it whilst it's warm and the butter melts in, you're actually using about 3tsp of butter each morning = 687kJs and 18g fat. Then there's the jam, honey or peanut butter on top. 6 teaspoons of sugar 575 kJ’s 1 Nudie Juice So when you make fruit juice, whether it's freshly squeezed or from the shop, the majority of the fibre and protein has been left in the pulp. All you're left with is the fructose (sugar) and water. Yes it's natural. Yes it does contain some vitamins and minerals. No, it's not a very sustainable breakfast. So there you go! You will probably find once you start to cut these foods out of your diet - or be more selective on the brand and ingredients, you will have more energy right throughout your morning and will avoid that sleepy feeling just a few hours after breakfast! Have a great morning, The Protein Bread Co Team