Cereal vs. banana

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Jthanmyfitnesspal
Jthanmyfitnesspal Posts: 3,521 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I have been eating a ~500kcal breakfast of berries, walnuts, milk, and either a banana, 1 oz of a dry cereal (such as shredded spoonfuls), or a packet of instant oatmeal (sometimes dry, sometimes cooked with the milk). I like the variety and will keep cycling through the options plus a few more.

However, I'm interested in the question: which is the most healthy?

I observe that the banana is the least processed, the oatmeal has the least sugar, and the cereal has slightly more fiber.

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Replies

  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    "healthy" cannot be discussed in a vacuum...it requires looking at the composition of your diet as a whole to ensure you're meeting your nutritional requirements overall. For example, veggies are very healthy...but a diet consisting solely of vegetables would result in undernourishment because you would be missing many key nutrients that are essential to a proper diet.
  • serindipte
    serindipte Posts: 1,557 Member
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    Not exactly an answer to your question, but tossing this out there:

    I feel more satisfied longer if I kick up the protein in my breakfast. I go with eggs, turkey and cheese with a toss of diced spinach (which I can't even taste). Sometimes I swap my deli turkey for turkey sausage and now and then I add a slice of lightly buttered toast, but protein, for me, is way better than a carb heavy breakfast.
  • cityruss
    cityruss Posts: 2,493 Member
    edited January 2017
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    Neither is inherently healthy nor unhealthy or more healthy than the other. They're individual foods that contain calories and macronutrients.

    The question should be how do they fit in to your overall dietary intake, which provides most satiety and which do you prefer?

    Neither are going to be a deal breaker.

  • zyxst
    zyxst Posts: 9,134 Member
    edited January 2017
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    Depends on what you consider healthy.
  • rainbowbow
    rainbowbow Posts: 7,490 Member
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    Individual foods cannot be healthy, only the composition of your overall diet (assuming it meets all of your needs) can be healthy.
  • ksenya03
    ksenya03 Posts: 51 Member
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    It depends on what your goals are as to which is "better" for meeting those goals. Neither the banana nor the oatmeal is inherently bad.

    It also depends on what else you are eating through out the day and through out the week so that that you are maintaining your overall nutrition levels in terms of macro and micro nutrients. Somedays one item may better balance out the rest of your diet than the other, but you can't just look at one item in a vacuum and say "good" or "bad."
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
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    Jthanmyfitnesspal wrote: »
    I have been eating a ~500kcal breakfast of berries, walnuts, milk, and either a banana, 1 oz of a dry cereal (such as shredded spoonfuls), or a packet of instant oatmeal (sometimes dry, sometimes cooked with the milk). I like the variety and will keep cycling through the options plus a few more.

    However, I'm interested in the question: which is the most healthy?

    I observe that the banana is the least processed, the oatmeal has the least sugar, and the cereal has slightly more fiber.

    yufzc0ug5j38.png

    A banana is ONE ingredient, oatmeal is ONE ingredient. I can't meet all nutrition goals with each and every thing I eat. But with a combination of foods.....throughout the day I can.

    I look for protein, fat & fiber with breakfast. Find combinations that are filling to you.

    Cereal like Kashi GoLean is high protein and high fiber. Pour on some 2% milk & I have a modest amount of fat too.

    Eggs & a banana. Protein, fat & fiber.

    Oatmeal (made with milk for protein) and chopped nuts, or overnight oatmeal made with Greek yogurt.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    I'm amazed you're not starving within 2 hours with a breakfast consisting of 500 calories of carbs and so little protein!

    Otherwise, it really doesn't matter. Eat what you like.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    "healthy" cannot be discussed in a vacuum...it requires looking at the composition of your diet as a whole to ensure you're meeting your nutritional requirements overall. For example, veggies are very healthy...but a diet consisting solely of vegetables would result in undernourishment because you would be missing many key nutrients that are essential to a proper diet.

    This.

    So the answer is none of them are inherently more healthy.
  • Jthanmyfitnesspal
    Jthanmyfitnesspal Posts: 3,521 Member
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    Francl27 wrote: »
    I'm amazed you're not starving within 2 hours with a breakfast consisting of 500 calories of carbs and so little protein!

    With regard to breakfast macros: After much experimenting I find I feel best when I eat enough good complex carbs at breakfast. That particular combination is C:65/F:21/P:14g, which seems to work well for me. I eat 50% carb calories over all, mostly complex. I exercise about 500-700kcals many days. This might have something to do with needing the carbs.

    With regard to 500kcals for breakfast: my goal is to eat about 1580kcals per day (without exercise), so ~500kcals for breakfast seems to fit with that.
  • ritzvin
    ritzvin Posts: 2,860 Member
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    For me personally, they are all too sugary/starchy..I would be hungry/craving more food about 10 minutes later.
  • Jthanmyfitnesspal
    Jthanmyfitnesspal Posts: 3,521 Member
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    OK, I tried the egg, ham (uncured), cheese, toast breakfast this morning (which I usually make for my son, anyway) with a splash of orange juice to flavor my 12oz of water and a teaspoon of honey in my tea. It's actually lower in overall calories and comes in at C:29, F: 25, P26g. It did leave me feeling a little hollow, but let's see how it goes.

    (I had a 700kcal workout at the pool last night...)
  • trigden1991
    trigden1991 Posts: 4,658 Member
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    cityruss wrote: »
    Neither is inherently healthy nor unhealthy or more healthy than the other. They're individual foods that contain calories and macronutrients.

    The question should be how do they fit in to your overall dietary intake, which provides most satiety and which do you prefer?

    Neither are going to be a deal breaker.

    My thoughts exactly.
  • paperpudding
    paperpudding Posts: 9,014 Member
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    Francl27 wrote: »
    I'm amazed you're not starving within 2 hours with a breakfast consisting of 500 calories of carbs and so little protein!

    Otherwise, it really doesn't matter. Eat what you like.

    I'm not amazed at all - given many people don't even eat breakfast and they cope fine.

    Myself, as I have mentioned elsewhere on forum - almost every work day, for breakfast I eat 3 weetbix with small amount of skim milk and tsp sugar. Less than 500 calories and mostly carbs, little protein.
    I eat this around 8:30 am and am not starving 2 hours later. I usually have small snack ( eg a muesli bar) about 3 hours later and lunch around 1:00, ie about 4 - 5 hours later.

    This idea that everyone feels starving shortly after a non protein filled breakfast seems odd to me.
  • crzycatlady1
    crzycatlady1 Posts: 1,930 Member
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    paperpudding wrote: »
    Francl27 wrote: »
    I'm amazed you're not starving within 2 hours with a breakfast consisting of 500 calories of carbs and so little protein!

    Otherwise, it really doesn't matter. Eat what you like.

    I'm not amazed at all - given many people don't even eat breakfast and they cope fine.

    Myself, as I have mentioned elsewhere on forum - almost every work day, for breakfast I eat 3 weetbix with small amount of skim milk and tsp sugar. Less than 500 calories and mostly carbs, little protein.
    I eat this around 8:30 am and am not starving 2 hours later. I usually have small snack ( eg a muesli bar) about 3 hours later and lunch around 1:00, ie about 4 - 5 hours later.

    This idea that everyone feels starving shortly after a non protein filled breakfast seems odd to me.

    This.
  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
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    Jthanmyfitnesspal wrote: »
    OK, I tried the egg, ham (uncured), cheese, toast breakfast this morning (which I usually make for my son, anyway) with a splash of orange juice to flavor my 12oz of water and a teaspoon of honey in my tea. It's actually lower in overall calories and comes in at C:29, F: 25, P26g. It did leave me feeling a little hollow, but let's see how it goes.

    (I had a 700kcal workout at the pool last night...)

    Eggs and oatmeal seem to do the trick for me. I basically rotate out everything you mentioned in your original post but either include a couple of eggs, a Greek yogurt, or make a smoothie with my (frozen) banana & protein powder.

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