Heavier breakfasts could actually help you lose weight

• Heavy breakfast could ease weight loss process.
• People have lower appetite when they take large breakfasts.
• Starting day with healthy breakfast can aid maintenance of physical activity too.

Eating more to lose weight sounds weird but research has shown that a heavy breakfast could ease the weight loss process.

A research team at the University of Aberdeen controlled people's meals to see the effects of heavy breakfasts and dinners. 

They found that people had a lower appetite when they took large breakfasts making it easy for them to avoid calories for the rest of the day.

The study published in the journal Cell Metabolism found that it was not a good idea to eat in the evening and a smaller dinner was healthier than a bigger one. Researchers were studying how our bodies are affected by the time at which we eat.

As the day progresses, the body's metabolism shifts towards sleep. Participants of the experiment received meals for two months that added up to 1,700 calories per day.

In the first month, they took half of their calories in the morning and a small lunch followed by an even lighter dinner. In the next month, they did the opposite.

The results showed that while the timing did not affect how many calories the volunteers burnt or the number on the weight scale, it affected hunger levels. A large breakfast suppressed the level of hunger for the rest of the day.

Prof Alexandra Johnstone, according to the BBC, said that starting the day with a healthy breakfast can aid the maintenance of physical activity too.

Researchers used yoghurt, eggs, smoothies, and sausages in the breakfasts. It is not clear, however, how bigger breakfasts controlled appetite.

Unfortunately, people's habits are opposite to what the findings show. Since most people "don't have time" to eat in the morning, they end up with heavier meals at night, she said.

Another recent study published in the journal PNAS showed that eating during the daytime instead of the night can reduce the chances of developing depression and anxiety.