Oatmeal & Your Health
Everyone knows that oatmeal is good for you. It's a whole grain, after all!
No sugar, no saturated fat, high fiber... it makes alot of sense why oatmeal
gets rave reviews in terms of being a health food. In fact, it was the first
whole food for which the Food and Drug Administration allowed a health claim to
be placed on the label! You've seen it - "Diets low in saturated fat and
cholesterol that include soluble fiber from oatmeal may reduce the risk of heart
disease."
But why is oatmeal such a health food star? What is it that make us feel so
virtuous when we start our day with a bowl of oatmeal and fruit?
In one word: Fiber. Specifically soluble fiber- you know, the kind that forms
a "gel" in your digestive system and absorbs toxins and fats. Since this gel is
so good at absorbing fat, it effectively reduces cholesterol levels and
ultimately reduces the risk for heart disease.
So how much oatmeal do you need to eat to see health benefits? Surprisingly,
not much. The FDA states that 4 grams of soluble fiber a day will help reduce
cholesterol levels. 1 cup of oatmeal has 4 grams!
But just adding oatmeal to an otherwise poor diet really won't do you much
good, so don't go thinking that a bowl of steel-cut oats is your "get out of
jail free" card. In other words, you can't have oatmeal for breakfast and
cheesecake for lunch and call yourself healthy. (Ok, maybe you can if that
cheesecake happens to be chocolate tofu
cheesecake.) Oatmeal needs to be a part of a diet low in saturated fat and
cholesterol, so try to reduce your intake of animal products and increase your
intake of oatmeal.
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