New Breakfast Ideas with Redbook Magazine

Mom's right: breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Leading nutritionists and doctors agree that starting off the day with a well-balanced meal will fire up your engines and ward off those mid-afternoon carb cravings. September is Better Breakfast Month, helping to raise awareness of importance of start the day off smart.

First lesson: Not all cereals are created equal. Look for one that is rich in protein, fiber, vitamins and minerals. "Qi'a is a new gluten-free healthy cereal from Nature's Path. Qi'a has optimal nutrition and sustained energy. Each serving has about 6 grams of protein, 4 grams of fiber and has between 130 to 140 calories," says Morgan Thompson from Redbook Magazine.

Qi'a contains great super foods like hemp, chia and buckwheat, all of which are excellent sources of plant based Omega 3s. "You can have it with milk, a milk substitute or even with water. You wait five minutes and let the seeds soak up the liquid and then you have a healthy breakfast cereal option," says Thompson. It comes in a small pack so it's convenient for an on-the-go snack or toss it into a protein shake or a smoothie. You can even put it on top of a salad as a topping. Like all Nature's Path products, Qi'a is USDA certified, which means that there's no preservatives, additives or pesticides. It's delicious and healthy.

Greek yogurt is also a breakfast favorite, but you should watch sugar intake in those too. Yoplait has created Greek 100, which is a 100 calorie strained Greek yogurt. "It's the only Greek yogurt endorsed by Weight Watchers which has given it the Points Plus value of two points. That's a great way to start off your day," says Thompson. It comes in six delicious flavors and has twice the amount of protein as your regular 5.3 ounce cup of yogurt. Finally, peanut butter is a perfect breakfast option, thanks to the right mix of fat and protein, plus all those natural Omegas to boot.

A new one to check out: Planters Nut-rition Peanut Butter. "It's packed with bananas and cinnamon and raisins and, of course, nuts. It's dense and nutritious. It has about 6 to 7 grams of protein depending on the variety, and at least five vitamins and minerals per serving," says Thompson. This is a great option if you want to spread it on a piece of whole wheat toast have with a piece of fruit of even have with a whole grain waffle. For more information, you can go to Redbookmag.com