Want to lose that fat around your belly? Having a big breakfast daily might help!

New York: Do you want to lose those extra fats around your wiastline? Well, researchers have said that having a big breakfast daily may help maintain your body mass index (BMI).

The findings showed that people who ate more than three meals daily and made dinner their largest meal were at the risk of developing a higher BMI -- associated with increased of risks of various diseases.

Hana Kahleova, from Loma Linda University (LLU) in California said, eating breakfast and lunch, skipping supper, avoiding snacks, making breakfast the largest meal of the day and fasting overnight for up to 18 hours may be the practical weight-management strategy.

Kahleova added, the study confirm the ancient nutritional maxim, eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a pauper.

For the study,the team examined more than 50,000 participants.

Irrespective of meal pattern, there was, on average, an increase in weight gain year-by-year until participants reached the age of 60. After 60, most participants experienced a weight loss each year, said co-author Gary Fraser, Professor at LLU.

"Before age 60, those eating calories earlier in the day had less weight gain," Fraser said, adding that after age 60, the same behaviour tended to produce a larger rate of weight loss than average.

"Over decades, the total effect would be very important," Fraser said.

The study was published in the Journal of Nutrition.

(With IANS inputs)