By now, everyone is familiar with the adage that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, so it is imperative children start their day right. According to a 2014 article by US, children who eat breakfast on a daily basis are 20 percent more likely to graduate. Children who regularly have breakfast are more focused than those who skip their morning meal.

As the name suggests, breakfast breaks the overnight fasting period. Those who eat breakfast tend to consume more milk and whole grains than those who skip the meal. Milk offers up important calcium for the body. It also fills up the stomach, helping avoid overeating and snacking later in the day.

It also balances blood sugar levels. To avoid glucose fluctuations throughout the day, eating fruit, grains and lean protein within two hours of waking helps kickstart one’s metabolism. Getting metabolism working early helps burn calories throughout the day, whereas skipping an early meal tells your body to conserve, rather than burn extra calories.

Breakfast also boosts energy levels by energising the body. People who eat an early meal show an increase in physical activity throughout their mornings than people who skip it. Activity helps prevent weight gain and fatigue. Children who have breakfast are not likely to snack as much and this reduces their dependence on junk food.

The benefits of a good breakfast are numerous, especially for children. But not every child in Pakistan can afford one. A school meal programme may have the answers for their wellbeing and their academic future

Breakfast also stimulates the brain; it can actually provide a mental edge. Stable glucose levels can help your ability to focus, reason and process information. It also has benefits for the heart and cholesterol levels.

However, not everyone can afford to have breakfast around the world. At least 40 percent of 52 seventh graders surveyed in 2017 [double checking where] said they would benefit from a breakfast programme at school. A breakfast programme would benefit lots of families and help the children start their day better.

During my research on what Pakistani children have for breakfast, my team recently interviewed 100 young girls, mostly students of kindergarten at Waseen Sarbazi Government Girls Secondary school in Lyari and found the following: 60 per cent did not have breakfast while 23 per cent had tea, 11 per cent had tea and a biscuit and 6 per cent had paratha and tea.

When asked why the girls did not have breakfast, we received the following replies: they aren’t in the habit of eating so early; they had no one to cook for them; they’re used to only two meals a day; or they couldn’t afford it.

It’s important to teach families about the link between breakfast and academic performance. A 2017 study on high school students by Zayed University in Abu Dhabi, for example, found that 62 per cent of the 130 female students who ate breakfast regularly performed better than those who didn’t have a morning meal.

These findings support the hypothesis that consumption of breakfast has a short-term positive impact on cognitive performance among school-going children. Therefore, one must advocate for the development of school breakfast programmes to promote healthy eating habits among school-going children.

This is especially important in Pakistan, where 40 percent of children under 5 are stunted (low height for their age) and 17.7 percent suffer from wasting (too thin for their height), according to an article published in Ziauddin University’s Pakistan Journal of Medicine and Dentistry. While significant investments are being made by successive governments to tackle this problem, more needs to be done — and quickly.

School Meal programmes can address multiple issues. These programmes are globally recognised as the most effective tool to support the nutritional health and wellbeing of children along with contributing to their academic performance.

In many countries, they are an established component of national social protection schemes that support the most vulnerable families. According to the World Food Programme (WFP), nearly half the world’s school children in low and middle-income countries — some 310 million — will sit down to eat a school meal.

India now feeds more than 100 million children; Brazil 48 million; China 44 million; and South Africa and Nigeria each more than 9 million, as stated by WFP. These meals are provided every day of the school year and, in all these countries, half of the children fed are girls. Having food at school not only improves a child’s nutrition and health, but also influences their educational outcomes and life achievements.

It’s useful to study the example from Bangladesh. In 2013, the government signed an agreement with Muslim Aid to supply over 93,000 high energy biscuits to over 400 primary schools in the Patuakhali District. Through the School Feeding Programme, many students, whose poor diet affected their ability to develop at school, now receive essential vitamins that will help them to grow.

While the programme was a success, it is currently being reviewed to ascertain how it can evolve to help cater to the country’s growing needs. With improved concentration and higher energy levels, students are better able to achieve and fulfil their potential.

While many local organisations, NGOs and social workers provide meals to students in Pakistan, collectively it is not enough. A properly organised programme, supported by the government, could help get the 22.6 million Pakistani children who are currently out of school, back to learning and healthy development. Young children especially need healthy and nutritious meals, since the brain continues growing till five years of age.

As a doctor with the experience of managing many government schools in Karachi, my team and I are trying to provide meals to students at primary and secondary schools. We’ve found this helps in improving admission rates as well retention rates, especially in schools in rural areas or poverty-stricken areas.

If the government starts a regular meal programme in schools, it will improve these rates and give children an opportunity to grow and prosper.

The writer is the director of Shine Humanity and is also head of the Malnutrition Programme, Sindh

Published in Dawn, EOS, September 3rd, 2023