The first morning waking up in Barcelona, during my time studying abroad in Europe I went to a restaurant under my apartment complex to get breakfast. Being from America, I have always been told that breakfast is the most important meal of the day and did not think any differently in Europe. Therefore I expected to eat a lot. Arriving at the restaurant, I was forced to choice between a half baguette with some “jamon” or a croissant and nothing else. I opted to eat a croissant with a coffee. The social norm is that Europeans eat a light breakfast as opposed to Americans who usually eat a large “hot breakfast. In Spain this is more apparent because the Spanish generally have snacks (for example a second breakfast) throughout the day, and a big fiesta during lunch time where they stuff their faces and then rest before getting on with the day.

This connects to both malnutrition and obesity. There is a lot of scientific evidence behind skipping breakfast and missing out on important nutrients that lead to malnourishment. Skipping breakfast or eating a light breakfast that is comprised of high sugar, and or fatty foods such as a pastry or a croissant disrupts blood sugar balance and insulin output. This further promotes cravings throughout the day which leads to snacking, overeating, and obesity. Ideally, people should eat a healthy but calorically dense breakfast. Regarding obesity, though eating or skipping a light breakfast promote obesity, I noticed in Europe that there are no where near as many obese people as there are in America. I think this is because of the eating habits Europeans are taught. First off, serving sizes are much smaller, and fast food such as McDonalds is not looked at as a cheap alternative, being priced the same as a meal at a sit-in restaurant.