People who cut the number of calories they consume at breakfast tend to have a reduced energy intake overall, a new study suggests.
A research team at the medical Research Council Human Nutrition Research Unit in Cambridge looked at a group of 33 overweight and obese people.
Participants were given a breakfast that was either 20 per cent or 40 per cent smaller than usual, which was achieved by serving up the same foods but in smaller portion sizes.
The researchers then observed their day-long energy intake and found that the size of the participants' breakfasts did not affect the amount of energy they consumed throughout the rest of the day.
This means that their overall energy intake fell for the day thanks to their smaller breakfasts.
Lead researcher Dr Susan Jebb, who presented the findings at the European Congress on Obesity, said: 'Overweight and obese adults who were covertly given a smaller breakfast did not eat more food during the rest of the day, and therefore ate fewer calories overall.'
However, she added that more research is needed to determine the effect of reduced portion sizes at breakfast-time in real life, as the study was conducted in a controlled laboratory setting.