Have you ever thought about how to have great meal patterns and how great your meals pattern is? I believe that most of us do not even have a good meal schedule nowadays due to our daily busy lives. We acknowledge that due to our busy lives, we will tend to grab something easier and fast for breakfast, lunch and even dinner. Speaking of something easy and fast, knowing Malaysians, it is always going to be fast foods and unhealthy snacks, am I right? This is where your meal patterns could be in a way not really good for health.
What Are Meal Patterns?
Generally, meal patterns are used to describe someone’s pattern of meals in daily lives. Meals pattern commonly used to include big meals such as breakfast, lunch and dinner, or small sized meals such as supper and snack. In simpler words, a meal pattern could be said as someone’s eating pattern which will be important to determine the whole diet and energy intake.
Hence why, it is actually important for an individual to actually be more aware and ensure that their meal patterns are organised consistently. It is beyond doubt on how people used to take this easy and normalise not eating healthily could have a bad effect on their daily lives.
How Meal Patterns Could Affect Your Whole Life?
As simple as it sounds, it does have big impacts in so many perspectives that should be concerned by everyone in maintaining a healthy life and lifestyle. These are how meal patterns could actually affect these:
- Impact On Life
“We are what we eat”, that’s how meal patterns are actually important and crucial to have a big impact in our life. I believe the majority of people in our communities acknowledge how unhealthy food intake would lead to bad quality of life.
- Impact On Mood
Other than that, meal patterns also have the biggest impacts on mood in daily life. It is beyond doubt on how unhealthy meal patterns could lead to unpleasant feelings. Most likely our mood will turn bad due to either overeating or hunger.
- Impact On Health
This somehow could be the main reason why meal patterns are crucial even though a lot of people aren’t really concerned about this. Unhealthy and unorganized meal patterns indeed could give bad impact on health such as overweight/obese, tooth decay, high cholestrol, osteoporosis, heart disease and stroke.
- Impact On Work
Unorganised and unhealthy meal patterns eventually will have big impacts on working performance too. Where it will most likely cause unproductivity that is definitely needed in working life. Hence why, it is important to have great meal patterns to keep a good performance at work.
- Impact On Studies
Moving on to the last one, unhealthy or unorganised meal patterns also could have a big impact on studies. We acknowledge that studying will require a really excellent learning and memory. This is where the lack of nutrition will lead you to a low level of learning,memory, concentration and energy.
Suggestion On Great Meal Patterns To Be Followed
Different individuals will require different needs for food intake, however, it is still crucial for an individual to know and be more concerned on how their meals could affect their health and life. There are several factors to consider when determining what is “healthy” and “balanced” for you. Consider your taste preferences, nutritional requirements, culinary abilities, medical issues, money, and other factors.
It is not difficult to plan a daily menu as long as each meal and snack include some protein, fibre, complex carbs, and a little amount of fat. You should aim for 100 to 250 calories every snack and 300 to 600 calories per meal; but, depending on your hunger levels and energy requirements, you may require more or less.
- Breakfast
Indeed, breakfast should have been a great meal as a good start in the morning as it will be the determinant of the rest of your day. Breakfast will eventually be the most important meal of the day. It is going to be our first meal after not eating the whole night. Having your first meal of the day is important to actually restoring your energy and mood for the whole new day as a starter. These are the suggestions for breakfast:
- One of grapefruit.
- Two half-boiled eggs.
- A slice of whole wheat toast with granola butter.
- Snack
Snacking also could be important because if you go several hours without eating, your blood glucose levels will decline. Aids in suppressing your appetite and preventing overeating during the following meal. These are the suggestions for snack:
- One banana.
- A cup of plain yoghurt with 1 tablespoon of honey.
- Lunch
Eating lunch in the middle of the day boosts your blood sugar level, providing you with the energy you need for the remainder of the day. It also allows you to concentrate on the rest of the afternoon. These are the suggestions for your lunch:
- 6 slices of grilled chicken breasts.
- A bowl of salad optional but could be (3 cups of mixed greens with 1 cup of cherry tomatoes, ¼ avocado, topped with 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinaigrette).
- Snack
Snacking before you have your dinner is also important to ensure that you won’t eat a lot during dinner. Other than that, it also can help you to feel a little bit energised while waiting for your dinner. You can have grapes or any fruit before your dinner.
- Dinner
Our activity level falls as the day continues. However, this does not imply that you should forget some meals. Smaller, lighter meals are also effective. Reduce your meal consumption gradually during the journey. Eating a nutritious and varied breakfast and lunch is typically recommended. However, supper is also included. If you skip supper, there is a significant gap between your last and first meal of the next day. These are the suggestions for your dinner:
- A cup of steamed broccoli.
- A cup of brown rice.
- Sirloin steak.
- Snack
This is where you are supposed to have your last snack/supper before bed. This is optional as you can actually choose whether you are going to need supper or not depends on the day. These are the suggestions for your supper:
- A cup of plain popcorn.
- 1 ounce of dark chocolate.
