In blue zones, communities known for having the highest life expectancies in the world, longevity researcher Dan Buettner says breakfast is a top priority. Based on his time and research in places like Okinawa, Japan and Sardinia, Italy, Buettner suggests that first meal of the day may be crucial to living a long, healthy life.
“We have a saying, ‘breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a pauper,’” Buettner, who coined the term “blue zones,” told CNBC Make It last year.
“In blue zones, they are eating the biggest meal of the day for breakfast and then eating smaller meals as the day progresses, oftentimes eating an early dinner and then not eating until breakfast the next day.“
But the breakfasts eaten by residents in blue zones aren’t at all like what Americans typically eat to start the day, he notes.
“People should avoid most of what is marketed to us in America as breakfast foods such as pop tarts, sugar laden cereals, yogurts and granola,” Buettner says.
