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Take away everything but the croissant and cappuccino: it remains the favorite combination when we Italians go to have breakfast at the bar. Recent research by Altroconsumo also says this, confirming that it is not the only indispensable classic (when breakfast is eaten at home, milk and biscuits are still the most popular). Yet the experts keep telling us that in the early morning it would be best to avoid or minimize sugars, which does not mean having a necessarily savory breakfast, but one devoid – or in any case poor – of very sugary foods (such as croissants, in fact) as well as added sugars (such as those we put in coffee). The reason is that they cause changes in blood sugar which in turn determine the production of cortisol (and therefore stress), are absorbed quickly and immediately make you hungry, and in the long run they become a cause of inflammation.
How to have a healthy breakfast at the bar?
However, if at home we can choose more easily because we decide what to buy, what should we do at the bar where we have to choose from what is there? «It depends on how many times you go to the bar“, He says Romina Cervigni, nutritionist and scientific director of the Valter Longo Foundation. «If it is an exception, you are free to eat what you prefer: a gluttony indulgence once in a while doesn’t hurt. If, however, breakfast at the bar is a daily habit, you need to be careful to balance the foods” adds the expert.
How to have breakfast at the bar if you are on a diet
Given that balancing means making sure that breakfast contains all the micronutrients we need – i.e. carbohydrates, good fats and proteins (few, at breakfast) – how to choose in front of the window of a bar? «A simple orange juice is an excellent source of carbohydrates. Combined with a piece of dark chocolate and dried fruit, which can now be found in many bars, it is a complete and even if minimal breakfast., ideal if you follow a low-calorie diet. In this case, the good fats contained in dried fruit limit the glycemic peak of the juice” says the doctor. Another idea? «To further reduce sugar intake, freshly squeezed juice can be replaced with a cappuccinoeven better if made with a vegetable drink instead of cow’s milk because it is low in sugar.”
What to drink instead of cappuccino
There are actually many alternatives to the classic cappuccino: «All vegetable drinks, for starters. Even if they are sweetened, the amount of sugar they contain is still minimal and lower than cow’s milk. Furthermore, compared to cow’s milk, even if skimmed, the Vegetable drinks provide less fat says Dr. Cervigni, remembering as always that the teaspoons of sugar with which hot drinks are sweetened also make the difference.
Centrifuge, extract or juice: which is better to drink
Even if you prefer to “drink” fruit, the options are different. «By juicing the fruit fibers are filtered, so they do not fully play their role in slowing down the absorption of sugars says Dr. Cervigni. «In centrifuges and extracts, thermosensitive vitamins such as C deteriorate, and in any case they do not contain fibre, but they can be enriched with vegetables which dilute the sugar continues the doctor.
What to eat when you have breakfast at the bar
To balance the meal, the choice of what you eat should also depend on what you drink (or vice versa). «Considering that a fruit drink, whether juiced or otherwise, contains a lot of sugars, it would be better not to combine it with other sources of sugars such as brioche. Between both better to combine brioche with cappuccino, so that the overall glycemic load of the meal is lower. Even better, in reality, would be to combine the classic brioche with yogurt, which is rich in proteins that contribute to significantly lowering the glycemic load.”
Croissant at the bar: better traditional or vegan?
Vegan or traditional? Which of the two brioches is better to prefer? «From the point of view of nutritional composition there is no big difference: in both cases there are fats and sugars. What makes the difference”, concludes Dr. Cervigni, “can be the way in which they are prepared, starting with the type of ingredients. This is why it is not possible to generalise.”
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