In summary: most of the legitimate, recent research recommends that you eat breakfast if, and only if, you are hungry in the morning; and if you do eat, prefer protein-rich foods. Most importantly, don't feel bad about skipping breakfast, or feel compelled into eating.
In the big picture beyond just breakfast, if you cultivate the habit of listening to your own body's needs and eat when you are hungry, and eat healthy (no high sugar, high salt stuff) most of the time (of course, splurge once in a while), you are good. Keep in mind that medications (such as for diabetes) permanently damage your ability to instinctually listen to genuine signals from the body, so you need additional brain power to tune out false body signals in that case.
Here are 4 articles each with references that make the above point:
- Sorry, There’s Nothing Magical About Breakfast
- Breakfast Backtrack: Maybe Skipping The Morning Meal Isn't So Bad
- Ask Well: Does Skipping Breakfast Cause Weight Gain?
- Is Skipping Breakfast Bad For You? The Surprising Truth
- The science of skipping breakfast: How government nutritionists may have gotten it wrong
Here are the articles on the other side of the argument, not compelling enough or only applicable to limited segments; e.g., for high performance athletes, pregnant mothers, and other individuals, breakfast has benefits. I also suspect this may not apply to young children, say, under 10 years of age, where the wisdom of mothers prevail. Interesting that the results found by googling for "breakfast most important meal of the day" mostly fell into the previous category, except for the following two.
- Is Breakfast Really Your Most Important Meal?
- Why Breakfast Is the Most Important Meal of the Day
- WHY IS BREAKFAST IMPORTANT? (scroll to the bottom, you will see that this web site is sponsored by cereal and agriculture industry lobby; their primary focus is profit, your health is important but secondary)
