Drink Milk at Breakfast and You Will Eat Less Later

The key to not overeating at lunch is to choose carefully at breakfast. And here's a beverage choice that may help: skim milk.

In a study, overweight people who drank skim milk instead of fruit juice at breakfast ate about 9 percent fewer calories at their midday meal.

The Skinny on Skim Milk
The group of overweight men and women had a couple of slices of toast with margarine and jam along with their milk or juice. And even though both breakfasts supplied an equal number of calories, the milk drinkers still ate less at lunch. They simply felt more satisfied. (Watch this video for more simple tricks for controlling your weight while still feeling satisfied.)

Protein Power
So why can you drink milk and lose weight? It could be several things. Milk has 8 grams of protein per serving (juice has less than 1), and protein controls appetite better than carbs do. Protein may also dial down hunger-related hormones better than carbs or fats, and protein's appetite-suppressing abilities peak several hours after you've consumed it. Yep, just in time for your next meal. Finally, milk's more viscous than juice, which helps make it more satisfying. (Find out which health claims about milk are true -- and which ones aren't -- in this RealAge review.)

Not into drinking milk? Here are a few more options for getting some appetite-controlling protein into a balanced morning meal:

• A bowl of this Creamy Wheat Berry Hot Cereal has 14 grams of protein and 7 grams of fill-you-up fiber.
• This Eggs Italiano recipe gives you 22 grams of protein in each brunch-ready serving.
• You'll get 17 grams of protein in this milk-free Banana-Cocoa Soy Smoothie.

Wondering how many calories or how much protein or fat is in that favorite family recipe of yours? Use the Recipe Calculator at SparkRecipes.com to enter the ingredients and find out.