Synergistic Action Of Oat Constituents
Several compounds in oat may participate in improving lipemia, especially cholesterolemia. Thus, the potential oat lipid-lowering package includes -glucan, arabinoxylans, polyphenols, phytic acid, phytosterols, policosanol, betaine, choline, inositols, tocopherols and resistant starch. Besides the lipid-lowering package, a group of bioactive compounds with other benefits to health may be found in oat-based products, such as antioxidants, anticarcinogenic and/or anti-inflammatory compounds.
Strawberries And Cream Oatmeal
Did you know that oatmeal, yogurt and cinnamon all boost your metabolism? I use to love the little Quaker oatmeal packets, but they are full of sugar, preservatives and thickening agents, not a smart choice!
So I made my favorite flavor and added Greek yogurt to make it creamy and cinnamon just because I love it so much. Dont be put off by the balsamic vinegar it sweetens the strawberries without adding any sugar.
Instant Oatmeal Also Lowers Cholesterol
If you are looking for the cholesterol-lowering effects, instant oatmeal or quick-cooking oats do the job as well as steel-cut oats or rolled oats. They are still considered to be a whole grain. However, because these forms are made into very thin flakes that are quicker to digest, they have more of an effect on raising your blood glucose level. To prevent a rapid rise in your blood glucose, it’s wise to have some lean protein or healthy fat with your instant oatmeal, such as low-fat milk or chopped nuts.
You must also be careful when buying packaged flavored instant oatmeal to note the ingredients. These forms often include sugar and flavorings which you may not want.
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Why Drink Smoothies To Lower Cholesterol
Too much bad cholesterol can lead to excessive fatty deposits in the arteries. When the deposits build up, the arteries begin to narrow and eventually become blocked. This means that the body becomes prone to heart disease and stroke.
Moreover, high cholesterol has been linked to a variety of mental impairments, including dementia. Gallstones are painful and can cause major health issues down the road when cholesterol gets too high. Believe it or not, high cholesterol can actually cause pain and numbness in your legs. This happens because the big arteries running down the back of each leg end up clogged up, allowing blood to pool and blood pressure to rise.
How Oatmeal Lowers Cholesterol For Heart Health
A morning bowl of oatmeal can give you benefits towards heart health, including lowering your cholesterol. Oatmeal is made of ground oats that can be made into a variety of foods, including porridges, cookies, and snacks. Studies also have shown that oatmeal has some heart-healthy benefits. This is mainly due to the rich source of water-soluble dietary fibers, particularly beta-glucan, that are found in oatmeal.
Over the years, there have been many research studies that have proven the benefits of oatmeal in lowering cholesterol levels. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is convinced. Oatmeal was one of the first foods to carry the heart healthy distinction on its label because of promising research findings.
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The Role Of Soluble Fiber And Blood Glucose Levels
A diet high in soluble fiber helps to reduce the peaks and valleys of blood glucose because it slows the digestion of simple carbohydrates and slowly releases energy from other carbohydrates. This results in lower overall peaks in blood glucose, which in turn means less strain is placed on the pancreas to bring those levels back down. Translation: limiting the workload on your pancreas throughout your lifespan will decrease the likelihood that as you reach old age, your pancreas will be “worn out,” leaving you at an increased risk of developing diabetes.
Insoluble fiber on the other hand does not swell with water. Celery strings and kale stalks are good visuals. This form of fiber is less influential on fasting blood glucose levels than its soluble counterpart. One specific form of soluble fiber is shown to be the most effect called beta-glucan. Beta-glucan is found in the largest amount in oatmeal, barley, and psyllium husk supplement. There is an overwhelming amount of research supporting the benefits of soluble fiber, and particularly beta-glucan, on the improvement of fasting blood glucose levels and development of type 2 diabetes.2,3,4
So what’s the moral of the story? Start your mornings off with a bowl of oatmeal each morning in your younger years to avoid disaster down the line.
Breakfast Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Try it, you cant say Breakfast Cookies without smiling. These Breakfast Oatmeal Raisin Cookies are great for the family on the run, they travel well and you can prepare the night before and bake in the morning.
The oatmeal and cinnamon both boost your metabolism, this makes for a great way to get heart healthy oatmeal recipes into your diet!
If you want to make 30 little cookies that will work great too, just bake for 10-15 minutes and use a tablespoon to make them into ping-pong sized balls. Also try my Peaches and Cream Oatmeal Cookies, they are delicious and always the hit at parties!
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How To Make Oatmeal In The Slow Cooker
- Combine the oats, water, and cinnamon sticks in a slow cooker. Give the oats a quick stir and then cover and set to low and cook on low for eight hours.
- Go to bed or walk away and avoid stirring while it cooks.
- Do not add milk or sugar to oatmeal in the slow cooker. Instead, serve with nonfat or low-fat milk, honey to sweeten as a natural option if necessary, and garnish with dried fruits .
- Sprinkle with nuts and chia or flax seeds to add crunch and even more fiber.
The #1 Best Oatmeal To Eat To Lower Cholesterol Says Dietitian
If your doctor has ever told you that you have high cholesterol, they likely gave you specific instructions on the types of foods to eat to lower it. Maybe a high-fiber cereal, nuts and seeds, legumes, fibrous fruits and vegetables, and of course, whole grains. One of the whole grains that’s likely on the list is oatmeal, which studies do show can help lower your cholesterol.
And yet, while oatmeal can help with lowering LDL “bad” cholesterol, there is one particular type of oatmeal that is known as a cholesterol-fighting powerhouse that you should stock up on during your next grocery run, and that’s steel cut oats.
“Whole grain oats contain soluble fiber which helps to lower cholesterol,”says Lisa Young, PhD, RDN, author of Finally Full, Finally Slimand a member of our medical expert board. “Steel-cut oats, in particular, can help to lower cholesterol and are high in soluble fiber.”
According to a 2015 study from the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, whole-grain oats are known to be the best whole grain for lowering LDL cholesterol numbers. Harvard Health specifically points out how diets that feature whole-grain oats are superior to diets just focusing on whole-grain products, causing average cholesterol levels to drop by 6.5 points.
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Keep Your Heart Healthy
What makes oats so special to the point where they are one of the most researched foods when it comes to heart health? The secret lies within beta-glucan, a type of soluble fiber present in oats. Soluble fiber dissolves in water, turning into a gel and acting as a sponge that binds to cholesterol and fats and removing them from the blood stream to be excreted. Research has found that eating 3 grams of beta-glucan from whole oats may reduce total cholesterol by 12 points. With 2 grams of soluble fiber present in every 40-gram serving of oats and with beta-glucan making up the majority of the soluble fiber, you may benefit from oats’ cholesterol-lowering properties by eating 1.5 servings of oats regularly.
Why Is Cholesterol Important
The human body needs a small amount of cholesterol because it helps to build the structure of cells throughout the body. It also helps your metabolism work efficiently, makes hormones such as estrogen and testosterone, and produces bile acids that help the body digest fats.
Good cholesterol is called HDL and bad cholesterol is LDL.
When your good cholesterol is too low, your body wont be functioning at an optimal level and you may start to feel fatigued, foggy-headed, or even sick to your stomach. When your bad cholesterol is too high, thats when your heart can suffer irreparable damage.
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Choosing Oats For Oatmeal Diet
The regular oatmeal and the instant oatmeal food stuffs contain same amounts of fibers and are equally beneficial. Therefore, you can choose either of them for your diet. Secondly, if you are wondering whether oatmeal water is equally useful in lowering cholesterol as that of the oatmeal, then note that it contains relatively less amounts of fibers and hence, may not prove equally beneficial. If you want to make use of the entire fiber content in oatmeal, then you can use watery oatmeal by keeping the water left after cooking, into it.
Secondly, note that the oatmeal used in this diet should have no sugar or very little amounts of it. Most of the brands of oatmeal available in the market have added sugar. Therefore, when buying a box of oatmeal, make sure that you look for the one with no added sugar and fats. On the other hand, if you do not wish to have oatmeal in porridge form, you can make oatmeal cookies and add oatmeal to casserole.
Lastly, we can conclude by saying that oatmeal diet is definitely effective for men and women. So, if you have been diagnosed with high cholesterol, consult your doctor and make necessary changes in the diet to reverse the condition. Take care!
Effect Of Processing On Oat Grain Structure And Constituents
Oat grains have to undergo some form of processing before their nutrients become digestible. Overall technological treatments may be classified into the following main groups: mechanical, thermal, enzymatic and chemical treatments as well as refining and fermentation. In emerging and developing countries, malting, pre-soaking and pre-germination are also often used in traditional foods. First, the grain has to go through cleaning, grading and dehulling. The bran and germ remain on the groat after the dehulling process because the aleurone layer does not separate from the endosperm as easily in oat as it does in other cereals such as wheat. Consequently, the dehulled oat groat retains a concentrated amount of dietary fibres and other phytochemicals . Naked oats, a hull free variety, have a different nutritional profile compared to dehulled oats. In general, the former contains a smaller amount of fibres but larger amounts of proteins, lipids and certain phenolic compounds than the latter., The absence of hull presents the advantage of reducing the cost for the food processing industry., During kilning, a steaming process takes place as a part of oat milling. Here, Maillard reactions occur that improve the taste of the product while promoting stability of lipid and antioxidant compounds by deactivating endogenous enzymes.
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Oatmeal For Weight Loss
Eating oatmeal for weight loss is also a great habit thats easy to follow. Not only does it taste great, but the body digests oatmeal at a slower pace, keeping blood sugar levels steady, your energy levels up, and reduces your hunger cravings.
Youll feel more full all morning and will be able to resist the temptation to snack. A good oatmeal breakfast is definitely part of a clean eating diet plan that will help you drop weight easily.
How to cook oatmeal for weight loss:
- Cook the healthy oatmeal in a naturally sweet, low calorie vegan milk like almond milk. It boosts metabolism, adds protein, and eliminates the need for sugar.
- Top the healthy oats with metabolism boosting fruits, like berries, or apples.
- Add zero calorie spices like cinnamon to add flavor, without calories.
More healthy oatmeal tips and low calorie oatmeal recipes below
Quick weight loss can be achieved with a healthy oatmeal breakfast daily.
Find 15 oatmeal recipes for weight loss below
What You Need To Make The Perfect Bowl Of Oatmeal
- old fashioned rolled oats rolled oats make for such a creamy bowl of oatmeal. I use Bobs Red Mill gluten-free rolled oats.
- water or milk water works great, but you can use milk if desired. I usually do a 1:2 ratio of oats to liquid. Most times I do all water for the liquid, but sometimes Id do half water and half almond milk.
- dash of salt this helps bring out the flavors
- pinch of ground cinnamon optional, but I love adding it!
- vanilla extract another optional ingredient, but vanilla adds a lovely flavor to oatmeal
- Toppings This is where the magic happens! The key to making *good* oatmeal?! Its the mix-ins and toppings! I love mixing in fruit, nut butter and a variety of textures to take my oatmeal to the next level. No more boring bowls of oats!
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How Do You Make Oatmeal
There are SO many ways to cook oats. For real! You can bake them, cook them on the stove top, make them in the slow cooker, make overnight oats or even make oatmeal in the microwave.
For this post, were going to focus on my go-to method for making oatmeal, rolled oats on the stovetop.
Combine ingredients Add ½ cup rolled oats, 1 cup water or milk and a dash of salt to a pot and heat over medium/high heat.
Simmer Bring the mixture to a boil, reduct heat and cook for about 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Serve The oatmeal is ready when the oats have soaked up most of the liquid and are creamy. See photo above!
Add toppings and enjoy Transfer oats to a bowl and add your favorite toppings.
Does Flavored Oatmeal Lower Cholesterol
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If oatmeal is the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the term heart-healthy breakfast, youre not alone. Oats owe much of their wholesome reputation to their exceptional fiber content — the whole grain contains more beta-glucan, a type of soluble fiber, than virtually all other grains. While oat beta-glucan has consistently been shown to help reduce LDL and total cholesterol levels, not all oatmeal products are equally beneficial.
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How To Cook Steel Cut Oats
Some people prefer to make their oatmeal with steel cut oats, which yield a bowl with al dente, chewy texture. Steel cut oats are the least processed oats and take the longest time to cook. Standing over the stove and stirring them occasionally for 35 to 45 minutes isnt our idea of fun, but we do love them. Our solution to the problem? We cook steel cut oats overnight in a slow cooker. Theyre hot and ready to eat in the morning, and if theres a sleep over with ten kids, we make an extra big batch.
Reduce Cholesterol With Daily Oatmeal
Since 1997, oatmeal has been given the status of a qualified health claim by the FDA. Health claims on food labels are claims by manufacturers of food products that their food will reduce the risk of developing a disease or condition. This oatmeal health claim has allowed advertisers to mention it as a heart friendly ingredient on any products that contains oatmeal. There are very few foods that have approved health claims.
Since the 97 ruling, oatmeal has been further reviewed, and Dr. James W. Anderson, professor of medicine and clinical nutrition at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine, has said that during the past 15 years, since the original studies showing the positive correlation between oatmeal ingestion and cholesterol reduction that Whole-grain products like oatmeal are among some of the best foods one can eat to improve cholesterol levels, in addition to other lifestyle choices.
Recently this July, in an article by Swedish researchers Dr Kristina E. Andersson and Per Hellstrand, the researchers found that oats not only reduce LDL or bad cholesterol, but they also have a positive impact in easing inflammation which can be caused by high cholesterol.
- 1Tbspraw organic coconut oil
- stevia or agave syrup to tastesmall amount
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Does Oatmeal Really Lower Cholesterol
There is a great deal of attention given today on healthy ways to lower bad cholesterol in the system. Many advertisements for cereals made with oats claim to help flush excess cholesterol from the body and thus ease the cholesterol level back into an acceptable range. The fact is that oatmeal is one of the best natural remedies for dealing with high levels of LDL or bad cholesterol.
The secret to oatmeals ability to lower cholesterol has to do with the fiber content of the grain. Soluble fiber, specifically beta glucan, helps to inhibit the rate of absorption of cholesterol in the intestinal tract. As a result, there is less of an opportunity for LDL cholesterol to clog the system and linger in the body for long periods of time.
While there is some difference of opinion on exactly what type of oatmeal or oat product is the most effective, there is general agreement that any food using oatmeal as an ingredient will provide some assistance in bringing cholesterol levels back into a balanced range. Rolled or steel ground oats are considered by many to be the best option. However, there is also evidence that even consuming a bowl of instant oatmeal or enjoying a cold oatmeal cereal will make a positive impact.