Before You Knock It, Try It! What You Need to Know About Oatmeal

What do you think of when you think of oatmeal?  Grandmom eating a bowl of mush at the kitchen table?  Yup!  Me too.  But have you tried it?  Even though that’s my visual, it’s one of my top go-to breakfasts because of its health benefits and the many ways it can be enjoyed (hot, cold as overnight oats and with so many different topping combos).  

So here is what you need to know about adding oatmeal into your daily morning routine.  

• Oatmeal is a Fiber Powerhouse 

Oatmeal is a soluble fiber or a type of fiber that dissolves in water that forms a gel-like substance in our digestive tract. Why is this great? Because it slows down digestion and aids absorption of nutrients.  So what does it help with?  

• Heart Health:  soluble fiber is attracted to and removes cholesterol pieces benefiting our LDL levels and overall heart disease.  
• Blood Sugar Control: by slowing down digestion, blood sugar levels are less likely to spike benefiting those managing blood sugars at home 
• Weight Management: because of that slow digestion, you tend to feel fuller longer preventing you from snacking or eating too much of something
• Digestive Heath: acts to regulate bowel movements. Yay!   

Now just keep in mind that oatmeal is a great source of fiber but more fiber is needed in your diet to give you the full effect.  To break it down, let’s say 1 cup of oatmeal contains about 4 grams of fiber but women are striving for 25 grams per day and men for 38 grams per day.  So add this to your diet along with other great sources of fiber too to get to your goal!

• Not All Oats are the Same

Steel cut, rolled, old fashioned, instant, quick?  What is the best?  What is the difference?  Well the more we play with the oat itself aka process it, the less we love them.  

• Best choice: Steel cut wins! It is the least processed since it is only cut into 2-3 pieces with steel disks, leaving it to have the highest amount of fiber. That being said it does take longer to cook.  
• Middle ground:  Rolled, old fashioned and quick oats fall into this category.  They are convenient because they take less time to cook, but tend to be less fiber filled because of the way they are processed (bran removed/cut into smaller pieces). 
• Least favorite: Instant oats.  Yes, they are super quick in the microwave, but they tend to have less fiber than the others and typically are pre-sweetened adding more sugar than we need. 

• Yes, Oats have Protein! 

As we know from last week’s blog, protein continues to be a hot topic.  So yay that oatmeal has protein, but is it enough?  

About a half a cup of oatmeal alone has about 5 g protein.  So yes, there is protein in oatmeal but not enough to cover your protein intake for the morning.  Try adding Greek yogurt, milk, nuts/nut butters, seeds or a side of hardboiled egg(s) to pump up the protein to kick off your day.  

• Toppings Make a Difference 

Toppings can really add to your oatmeal to make it better BUT it can also do the opposite… For example adding syrup, candy, chocolate or sugar can really deplete the benefits of the oatmeal, but so many toppings add more protein, more fiber and other nutrients that our body loves and benefits from.  

Here are some toppings/additive ideas to give a try: 

• Peanut butter/peanut butter powder 
• Protein powder
• Hemp hearts 
• Chia seeds
• Ground flax seeds 
• Any type of nut/seed (hello crunch!) 
• Cinnamon
• Vanilla 
• Greek yogurt 
• Fruit (dried, fresh, frozen or canned) 

The take away is oatmeal is a blank slate, pick what is best for you and your body to enhance it!  

• Oats are Gluten Free!  

For those of you with gluten intolerance or Celiac disease, oats are your friend BUT be sure to check that they are marked as certified gluten free (GF). Why?  Well unfortunately oats are often processed with wheat so cross contamination can be of concern.    

So have I convinced you to add oatmeal into your diet?  Or maybe change up the type of oatmeal you buy or what you add to it?  Let us know!  We love to hear from you!  

BONUS: Email amandastahlRD@gmail.com with the subject line “OATMEAL” to gain our overnight oat recipe to try on your own.  I’ll send it directly to your mailbox. 

Enjoy! 

This blog was written by Amanda J. Stahl, RD, LDN, co-founder of Simple Start Nutrition.  For more blog posts and nutrition information follow @simplestartnutrition on Instagram and Facebook.  Also feel free to contact us, by visiting our website (simplestartnutrition.com) to schedule an appointment to discuss your nutrition related needs. 

Resources: 

https://www.eatrightpa.org/blog/2020/01/14/oatmeal-101-health-benefits-and-cooking-tips/#:~:text=Oatmeal%20has%20a%20lot%20of,Types%20of%20Oatmeal

https://www.mayoclinichealthsystem.org/hometown-health/speaking-of-health/start-your-day-with-healthy-oatmeal