Valter Longo on Skipping Breakfast: A Fact-Check

Longo, one of the best-known fasting researchers, argues against stretching the overnight fast long enough to skip breakfast. Pooled cohort studies back the association he describes: people who skip breakfast have somewhat higher all-cause and cardiovascular mortality. Those studies are observational, though, and people who skip breakfast differ from people who eat it in many other ways. Randomized trials have not shown that making people eat breakfast improves weight or energy intake.

Valter Longo said

“Longo says skipping breakfast is linked to a higher risk of death from all causes and of cardiovascular disease, and that it is bad for you.”

The science says

Meta-analyses of cohort studies do find a modest link between skipping breakfast and higher mortality and cardiovascular risk, but they cannot show that skipping breakfast causes it, and trials do not show that adding breakfast helps with weight.

Science Score

Several meta-analyses of prospective cohorts show a consistent modest association. Nothing is randomized for hard outcomes, and confounding from smoking, shift work and diet quality is likely.

The verdict

The link is real in the data. That skipping breakfast causes the harm is not proven.

The claimWhat Valter actually said

In a USC interview about fasting and aging, Longo recommended a daily eating window of about 12 hours. He warned that fasting longer than 12 or 13 hours can lead people to skip breakfast, and he cited studies linking breakfast skipping to higher mortality and cardiovascular disease.

Sources

Why it mattersWhy this matters for longevity

Time-restricted eating and breakfast skipping are popular longevity habits, so which way the evidence points matters to millions of people.

It is an unusual case where a fasting researcher warns against one kind of fasting.

The evidenceWhat the science says

A 2024 meta-analysis of prospective cohorts linked breakfast skipping to higher all-cause mortality (HR about 1.27) and cardiovascular mortality (HR about 1.28). A 2019 systematic review found a similar picture for cardiovascular disease and death.

These are associations. Breakfast skippers smoke and drink more and eat worse on average. A 2019 BMJ meta-analysis of randomized trials found that adding breakfast did not help with weight loss and increased daily calorie intake, so the evidence does not support calling breakfast protective in itself.

TakeawayThe honest takeaway

The practical lesson

If you skip breakfast, keep the rest of your diet, sleep and activity in good shape. The evidence flags a risk pattern, not a rule that you must eat in the morning.

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RelatedRelated habits

Time-Restricted EatingTwelve-Hour Eating WindowPlant-Forward Diet

Each of these is a habit you can build on its own. Explore them through the Topics index.

SupplementsThe supplement angle: Fiber and whole grains

Support a habit, do not replace one

If you do eat breakfast, whole-food options with fiber are a reasonable choice. No supplement stands in for a meal pattern.

Supplements can support good habits. They do not replace sleep, movement, nutrition, or medical care. Talk with your healthcare provider before starting anything new.

This is educational commentary, not medical advice, and does not imply that Valter Longo endorses, is affiliated with, or uses Winning Longevity or any product. We critique the claim and the evidence, not the person. Any direct quote is a placeholder until sourced. Talk with a qualified healthcare provider before changing your routine. See our health disclaimer.

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