When You Eat Breakfast Could Help Predict Your Risk of Early Death
September 05, 2025 | Source: Everyday Health | by Don Rauf
Do you sit down to breakfast early or late? The answer matters, research suggests, because when you eat may make a difference in your overall health and even how long you live.
A new study has found that people tend to experience gradual shifts in meal times as they age, and for older individuals, eating later — especially breakfast — may be linked to underlying physical and mental problems including depression, fatigue, and oral health issues.
Most notably, the findings suggested that people who ate breakfast on the late side were slightly more likely to die prematurely compared with people who had their first meal earlier.
“Older adults may be particularly affected by shifts in meal timing because of health challenges and lifestyle transitions,” says lead study author Hassan Dashti, PhD, RD, an assistant professor and research scientist with a focus in nutrition, chronobiology, and genetics at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.
“Monitoring when older adults eat, particularly their breakfast time, may offer an easy-to-track marker of overall health and aging,” he says.
An indigenous sculptor from a small village in Yucatán has recreated the ancient Maya process of extracting blue paint from a native plant via a chemical reaction.
Luis May Ku, 48, saw years of research finally pay off in January, when scientists in Italy and Mexico confirmed that his formula was genuine, making it officially the first time that the world has seen the traditional Maya Blue pigment made in almost two centuries.
Perhaps even more impressive is that this happened within the confines of a self-made laboratory.
The ancestral pigment is known for its unique resistance to weathering, allowing it to appear relatively untouched after more than 1,000 years. It was made and used by Mesoamerican cultures during a period extending from about the eighth century until just after the mid-19th century.
Fantastic pre-Columbian murals and pottery fragments discovered around important archaeological sites show evidence the color was considered exclusive to the gods or to those chosen for ritual sacrifice.