Is Pizza the Answer to a Balanced Breakfast?
As a college student, I know it’s very difficult to choose between healthy, affordable, and quick meals. Sometimes, we just want to indulge in one of the many pizza places available in the Fort Collins area and not feel guilty about what we are eating. But should we really feel guilty at all? Is pizza healthier than it seems? That depends.
Pizza gets a bad rep for being greasy and high in calories. But it’s not true for all pizzas. Where you get your pizza and what you put on it are both deciding factors on how healthy each slice really is.
When choosing where to get your pizza, it is better to choose a place with a wide variety of toppings so you’ll have more potentially healthy options. Places like Mod Pizza allow you to pick out all the toppings you could possibly want, for just one set price (roughly $8). Opt for something healthier, like grilled chicken and avoid the higher calorie options, like italian sausage.
Choosing toppings is the key factor in making your pizza a balanced, healthy meal. Choosing a lean meat with lots of veggies allows you hit most of your major food groups and enjoy a delicious, guilt-free pizza. Plus, most pizza contains Vitamin C, Vitamin A, lycopene, and fiber just from it’s basic ingredients.
In a blog post, Chelsey Amer, a registered dietitian, writes, “pizza can actually be a more balanced breakfast option than most breakfast cereals.”
Amer goes on to explain that while the two are similar in caloric intake, pizza has a much higher protein level sustaining you for longer. Amer is definitely not labeling pizza a health food, but she does make a good point. By combining veggies, lean protein, carbs, and dairy, pizza offers a fairly balanced meal.
Some pizza places, like Pizza Rev and Mod Pizza, even offer the calorie count for each of their toppings on their websites, a helpful way to determine what to put on your pizza.
You can make pizza an unhealthy meal by making the wrong decisions. Choosing a pizza place, like Pizza Casbah, where the servings are huge, the pizza is extremely greasy, and none of the topics are particularly healthy, all lead you to an unhealthy meal. Just as pizza can be made healthy, it can be made equally unhealthy so making the right decisions is key.
Next time you are in the mood for pizza just remember to pick the right pizza places, with lots of toppings to choose from, eat in moderation, and know the healthiest options available. While I wouldn’t recommend going to Pizza Casbah for your next healthy meal, pizza is not as bad as it seems. If you make the right choices, pizza can be an easy, quick, and relatively healthy meal that won’t break the bank. Plus, the leftovers can provide a sustaining, balanced breakfast or any meal for that matter.
