The school day without breakfast.

Today, nutrition experts at the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) warned that lack of energy and lower test scores are not the whole story. Studies show that children and adolescents who skip the morning meal have higher body fat than those who eat breakfast. And that, according to AICR Registered Dietitian Alice Bender, can set kids up for serious health problems in the future. With that in mind, AICR compiled a list of five quick, no-cook breakfast meals to start the day.

Good for Kids, Good for Moms and Dads
A good start, Bender says, is for parents to get in the breakfast habit. When parents have a morning meal, kids are more likely to eat breakfast too. Healthy choices are important, but keep it simple: A whole grain ready-to-eat cereal with fruit and milk or plain instant oatmeal with raisins and yogurt take less than five minutes to have on the table. Ask your children and teens for menu ideas and invite them to help shop and even prepare some things on the weekend. Make extra whole grain waffles on Sunday morning and freeze the leftovers for a quick toaster meal later in the week.

Five Healthy, No-Cook Breakfasts
These meals take just a few minutes to prepare and can be eaten at home or on the way to school.

• Breakfast Trail Mix (see recipe below) + reduced-sodium string cheese
• Peanut butter on brown rice cakes + apple (whole or slices) + 1 cup milk
• Breakfast smoothie (Berries, yogurt or silken tofu, 100 percent juice) + whole grain mini-bagel
• Breakfast Fruit Wrap – whole-wheat tortilla with ricotta cheese, a little fruit spread, sliced strawberries and chopped nuts.
• Whole-wheat pita bread with hummus, fresh fruit or a small box of raisins

Breakfast Trail Mix

• 1/2 cup unsalted peanuts
• 1/2 cup unsalted almonds
• 1/2 cup dried apple pieces
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 1/2 cup oat circles
• 1/2 cup bran cereal flakes