Are you one of them? Same breakfast, day after day. A 2022 study published in the journal Appetite found that 68% of people eat the same breakfast at least twice a week — while only 9% repeat dinner. Lately, nutrition experts have been revisiting the question: is a monotonous morning meal a good habit or a bad one?
The study, by Romain Cadario of Rotterdam School of Management and Carey Morewedge of Boston University, analyzed food diaries from 2,624 French and 1,275 American participants (4,481 samples across methods). In France, 73% repeated breakfast at least twice a week; in the U.S., 52%. Dinner repeated just 9% of the time.
In other words, breakfast is the most monotonous meal of the day — a global phenomenon.
Why breakfast? Different goals, the researchers say: breakfast serves "functional" goals — refuel, save time, don't go hungry. Lunch and dinner serve "hedonic" goals, where people are willing to seek variety.
Morewedge's widely quoted takeaway: breakfast habits are hard to change but easy to maintain — "build a healthy breakfast habit and it sticks long-term."
Eating the same breakfast is not inherently harmful — adequacy is what matters. Chitra BK, director of nutrition at KIMS Hospitals, told OnlyMyHealth (September 2026) that monotony's biggest risk is low dietary diversity, which bites hardest when fiber or protein runs short. Gut-microbiome expert Dr. Tim Spector warns that a single nutrient-poor diet can cut gut-microbiome diversity by 30–40% within days.
Nutritionists cited by RealSimple (July 2026) offer the upside: a nutrient-dense, low-glycemic breakfast supports cognition, memory, and attention. A fixed breakfast also simplifies decisions, grocery shopping, and daily routine.
The consensus: neither daily novelty nor rigid repetition — instead, fix the structure and rotate the ingredients. Keep the framework (whole grains + protein + fruit/vegetables + nuts) and vary what's inside it week to week. You keep the convenience of a habit while closing the nutritional gaps.
The Times ran an August essay from a self-described "mono-diet" advocate: Greek yogurt with nuts and fruit, two years straight, no boredom. Does it pass? By the expert standard, the structure is right — just rotate the ingredients a little more.