We all know the saying, “Milk does a body good,” but did you know breakfast does a body even better?

Many college students have the tendency of waking up minutes before their first class and not eating breakfast (never mind taking a shower). A recent study conducted by the Maryland State Department of Education revealed that students who ate breakfast showed a nine percent increase in standardized test score and a 40 percent increase in good behavior attitude.

Eating breakfast could equal a letter grade higher (of course you must also attend class and study). Eating breakfast improves the ability to concentrate thus the improvement of standardized test scores and the increased ability to concentrate in class.

Many students skip breakfast as a form of weight control. This plan is doomed for failure. Skipping meals sets up extreme hunger patterns in the day resulting in excess caloric intake.

Eating breakfast also aids in improving your total daily nutrient intake.

Your brain and central nervous system operate in glucose, fuel you need to think, walk, talk and carry on any daily activities.

Breakfast helps to replenish blood glucose levels, which is important given that the brain itself has no reserves of glucose; therefore, glucose just constantly be replenished.

Breakfast also provides you with energy to get going in the morning, thus enhancing creativity, alertness and short term memory.

By not eating breakfast you may suffer from weakness and hunger, thus making concentration and learning more difficult.

Experiencing fatigue and hunger may cause difficulty concentrating and learning.

This is related to having less energy to participate in the morning’s activities.

By missing breakfast you are less likely to makeup for the nutrients missed at breakfast and may end up overeating later in the day.

This is where people fail in weight loss efforts. Skipping breakfast also increases your chance for hypoglycemia.

Hypoglycemia or low blood sugar can cause shakiness, sweating, palpitations, hunger, headaches, confusion, lack of coordination, blurred vision, anger, seizures, and/or coma.

Here are some tips to sneak breakfast in:

• No time? Build a breakfast around foods that are ready to eat or take little preparation time. There are plenty that qualify: fresh and canned fruits, milk, yogurt, cheese, cottage cheese, ready-to-eat cold cereals, instant breakfast mixes, a bowl of oatmeal make with low-fat milk, topped with two tablespoons of raisins.

• Take it to go…try celery stuffed with peanut butter or a meat or cheese spread, dried fruits, vegetable juices, apple or banana slices topped with peanut butter, or a sandwich to go.

• Perk up cereals…top cereals with fruit or stir chopped nuts such as peanuts, pecans, or walnuts into cooked cereal.

• Not hungry yet? Drink juice. Something is better than nothing. Have some bread or crackers later in the morning, then drink some milk and eat some cheese, and egg or peanut butter. Maybe try a fruit smoothie made with one cup of strawberries, half a banana and one cup vanilla yogurt blended together.

• Don’t skip if you're on a diet. There is no evidence that skipping meals will help you lose weight. In fact, studies show that most people who skip breakfast tend to eat more later in the day.