In a new Swedish study from Linköping University, scientists have studied three different types of breakfasts and their acute effects on blood sugar: the low-carb breakfast, the low-fat breakfast and the Mediterranean breakfast. The last one, which meant just a cup of coffee for breakfast (supposedly a typical Mediterranean habit), also meant a much heavier lunch (with salmon, olives, nuts and white bread), is deemed best for people with diabetes, which is a bit of a surprise.

”It’s exciting. Today we give diabetics the advice to eat five times a day, three meals and two snacks. We have to question that advice—whether or not it really is good to eat that often. In our study we saw that it was better with just a cup of coffee for breakfast and then a big lunch,” says MD and researcher Hans Guldbrand. The study also took at look at the popular periodic fast known as 16:8, which means you fast for 16 days (this includes skipping breakfast). This way you’ll get lower levels of insulin during a longer period of time. Keeping the insulin levels down has many health benefits, such as a decreased appetite for sweets and helping the body to burn fat. Guldbrand points out that this result is interesting also for non-diabetics, especially those who are overweight. "We’re not that different. If you are overweight, your body has a difficult time dealing with sugar,” he says.