High-protein breakfast shown to improve nutrient intake and reduce cravings among adolescents

A recent American study suggests that a high-protein breakfast not only boosts daily nutrient intake but also curbs sugary cravings in teenagers, challenging the traditional focus on breakfast timing.

A new American study adds weight to the idea that breakfast may matter less for its timing than for its composition. Researchers following 128 young people aged 14 to 21 who usually skipped the morning meal found that those who ate breakfast consumed more fibre, iron, zinc and choline across the day, even though total calorie intake stayed about the same.

The strongest effects came in the group given a breakfast containing 30 grams of high-quality protein. According to Emma Rose Brown, a doctoral researcher at the University of Texas at Austin, the trial was among the largest, longest and most tightly controlled breakfast studies yet carried out in adolescents. The findings were presented at the annual meeting of the American Society for Nutrition.

The trial divided participants at random into three groups: one ate a high-protein breakfast, another had a lower-protein breakfast and the third continued to skip the meal. More than 18,000 meals were prepared for the project, with options including scrambled eggs, smoothies and burritos. Participants were free to eat as much or as little as they wanted, and the prepared meals were consumed more than 90% of the time.

Across the study, the breakfast groups ate fewer desserts, sweets and sugary foods than those who kept missing breakfast. The high-protein group also reduced its intake of added sugar more than the other groups, suggesting that a substantial morning protein load may help curb cravings later in the day. That fits with earlier research, including a 2015 study in adolescents who skipped breakfast and a 2021 systematic review, both of which found that protein-rich breakfasts were linked to greater fullness and lower later energy intake.

Tine Mejlbo Sundfør, a Norwegian clinical dietitian and researcher, said the latest study is especially convincing because the participants were randomised and were not told how to eat for the rest of the day. She said the results support the idea that a filling breakfast can make people less inclined to reach for sugary foods later on. Sundfør also pointed to earlier evidence that protein can prolong satiety, while noting that breakfast habits have weakened in Norway over time: 69% said in 2024 that they ate breakfast at least five times a week, down from 84% in 2011, while the share who said they never ate breakfast rose from 4% to 10%.