32 Chapter 4 – The unholy trinity: deprivation, starvation & justification What’ s breakfast? A cup of coffee and a good look around! A weight loss group member In 1993, Drs James Hill of the University of Colorado and Rena Wing of the University of Pittsburgh joined forces to establish and build a database of that special group of people who successfully maintained weight loss. Known as the National Weight Control Registry( NWCR), the database lists eligible participants who must be 18 years of age or older and have maintained a minimum 30 pound( 13.6 kilograms) weight loss for at least one year. In fact, the average weight loss is 66 pounds or 30 kilograms! Detailed questionnaires and annual follow-up surveys are used to understand the psychological characteristics of‘ weight maintainers’, as well as their strategies for maintaining weight losses. 6 While we have to be a little careful with the NWCR because the group is not representative of the general population who try to lose weight – only those who succeed – it still has much to teach us. One of the key characteristics of this group is that more than three-quarters( 78 %) of them eat breakfast. Why is this a key characteristic? What is the importance of having a hearty breakfast from a psychological point of view? Breakfast is not so much about nutrition as it is about undoing a‘ setup’ designed to allow us to over-eat later in the day. 6 Visit www. nwcr. ws / Research for more information.