10 Proven Health Benefits of Oats That You Need to Know About

Nutrients in oats

Oats are a great source of phosphorus, selenium and manganese. They’re a good source of soluble dietary fiber, iron and magnesium, vitamin B1.

Nutritional value of oats per 100g (cooked):

How many calories in oats – 71
How much protein in oats – 2.5g
How many carbs in oats – 12g
What is the fat content of oats – 1.5g

1 – Are oats gluten free?

Oats are naturally gluten free and are not related to gluten-containing grains like wheat, rye and barley. Oats are however sometimes contaminated with wheat when grown or processed.

Oats can be part of a gluten free diet if they originate from sources that guarantee uncontaminated oats. Several brands offer pure, uncontaminated oats.

Research has shown adding gluten free oats to a gluten free diet can help to provide the recommended daily fiber intake for individuals with celiac disease. The addition of oats to a gluten free diet can also increase antioxidant levels and enhance nutritional values.¹

What are steel cut oats?

Steel cut oats are made by processing oat groats, the whole oat grain that just has the outer hull removed, through steel cutters. This process chops the oat groats into smaller pieces, but still leaves the whole grain and oat bran.

How to cook steel cut oats?

Add a 1/4 teaspoon of salt to 3 cups of water and bring to the boil. Add 1 cup of steel cut oats, reducing heat to a low simmer. Occasionally stirring, cook covered with lid for 10 – 20 minutes. Remove from stove and leave it standing covered for a few minutes.

2 – Do oats help for weight loss?

Studies have revealed that starting the day with a nutritious, fiber rich meal such as oats can help with maintaining a healthy weight.²

The Department of Health and Human Services as well as the World Health Organization have reported that higher dietary fiber intake is helpful for managing a healthy body weight. Oats has been found as having the highest satiety value of all breakfast meals, giving a feeling of fullness for longer.

3 – Do oats help lower cholesterol?

There is a substance in oats called beta-glucan which significantly reduces LDL cholesterol. In people with high cholesterol levels, the intake of the equivalent of three grams of oat fiber daily generally reduces total cholesterol by 8 to 23 percent.

Three grams of oat fiber can be had by eating about 1 bowl of oats. There are over forty studies which confirm the ability of oats to reduce unhealthy LDL cholesterol.

What is beta glucan?

Oat beta-glucan is a kind of soluble fiber that’s found in the oat grain’s outer layer. Beta glucan is dissolved in the gut, forming a thick gel in the small intestine, which then binds to excess cholesterol. The body then excretes the gel and cholesterol as waste. This helps to reduce cholesterol levels.

4 – Do oats help with insulin sensitivity?

Participants in a double-blind, controlled clinical who consumed foods which contained oat beta-glucan showed improvements in insulin sensitivity.

5 – Do oats reduce risk of diabetes?

A number of studies demonstrate that individuals with high whole grain consumption had from 28 – 61% less risk of type 2 diabetes in comparison to people with the lowest whole grain consumption.³

One study of individuals with type 2 diabetes that ate foods high in oat fiber had a much lesser rise in blood sugar compared to other individuals who ate bread or rice.

6 – Do oats help reduce risk of asthma?

Research has revealed that children introduced to oats at an early age were less likely to develop persistent asthma.⁴

7 – Do oats help prevent colorectal cancer?

A review and meta-analysis of 25 studies on the incidence of colorectal cancer and the consumption of dietary fiber and whole grains such as oats revealed a 10% reduced risk of colorectal cancer for every additional 10g of fiber.⁵

8 – Do oats help with blood pressure?

Individuals who had high blood pressure and oats added to their diet had a significant reduction in blood pressure as well as the need for antihypertensive medicine.⁶

9 – Do oats help with coronary artery disease?

Higher intakes of dietary fiber and whole-grains such as oats have been associated with reduced progression of coronary atherosclerosis in individuals with established coronary artery disease.⁷

10 – Do oats help boost the immune system?

Researchers have found that beta glucans found in oats boost the immune system against viruses, bacteria, parasites and fungi.⁸

History of oats

Oats was one of the first cereals to be cultivated although the ancient Romans and Greeks saw oats as a kind of weed appropriate only for barbarians and horses. Cultivated oats arrived in America in the early 1600s with the first British immigrants. The biggest cultivators of oats are the U.S., Poland, Germany and Russia.