The most important meal of the day is most certainly breakfast. We all know how important it is to eat healthy, but many amazing things can happen to your body if your breakfast includes oatmeal every day! This super grain is a healthy nutritional powerhouse that hides behind its dull appearance.
Humans have learned to grow and harvest oats as a source of food and medicine for over two thousand years. Medicinally, oatmeal was and is used for healing the skin, intestinal illness, nerve problems, and uterine complaints.
HERE’S WHAT HAPPENS TO YOUR BODY WHEN YOU EAT OATMEAL EVERY DAY
There are some health conditions, for example gout, that may not benefit from a diet of oatmeal every day. If you have current health concerns, you better consult with your doctor before making this kind of a change to your diet.
NUTRITIONAL BENEFITS OF EATING OATMEAL EVERY DAY
Oatmeal is a whole grain that contains 13 grams of protein in one small half-cup serving. One tiny quarter-cup serving of oatmeal gives you almost 100% of your recommended daily intake of manganese!
Oatmeal contains numerous antioxidants including vitamin E, tocotrieonols, selenium, phenolic acids, and phytic acid. Other nutrients provided by a daily helping of oatmeal include Vitamin B1, Biotin, Molybdenum, Phosphorus, Copper and Magnesium among many other phytonutrients.
CHANGES YOU CAN SEE IN YOUR BODY WHEN YOU EAT OATMEAL EVERY DAY
One of the best benefits of eating oatmeal daily is that it can help prevent obesity and weight gain. This is due to the feeling of satiety, or satisfaction of your hunger, that oatmeal gives you when you eat it.
Oatmeal creates positive changes in your body in a several ways and makes you feel full longer. First, oatmeal provides excellent low-level energy for a longer period of time. Secondly, oatmeal provides fiber to keep your stomach feeling full longer.
The low-glycemic impact (GI) of a bowl of oatmeal eaten in the morning provides a good source of energy throughout the morning hours, without a dramatic increase or drop in blood sugar. If you’re able to maintain lower blood sugar levels over a longer period of time, it will help your body to regulate insulin usage.
The low GI of oatmeal helps you avoid cravings due to a drop in blood sugar. Without the low blood sugar cravings, we are less likely to reach for our favorite comfort food.
The daily caloric impact of an oatmeal breakfast is huge. Oatmeal could help you decrease your total daily calories by as much as 81%! Oatmeal prevented people from over-consuming calories at later meals in a study of high-GI breakfasts versus low-GI breakfast foods and the later caloric intake in the day.
Most low calorie, low fat diet foods are not good at making us feel satisfied. Oatmeal is good for that happy, satisfied, not-hungry-at-all feeling, which also means that you will eat less throughout the rest of the day. This daily decrease in your need for calories will result in wonderful weight loss and fat loss changes in your body.
OTHER HEALTH BENEFITS OF EATING OATMEAL EVERY DAY
- Lower cholesterol
- Less risk of cardiovascular disease
- Lower risk of heart failure
- Improved immune response
- Stabilize blood sugar and reduce risk of type 2 diabetes
- Excellent source of fiber which protects against breast cancer
- Whole grains protect against childhood asthma
- Safe grain alternative for celiac disease sufferers or those who are avoiding gluten in their diets
- Extend life expectancy
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT OAT PROCESSING
Oat groats: unflattened kernels that are good for using as a breakfast cereal or for stuffing
Steel-cut oats: they are produced by running the grain through steel blades that thinly slices them featuring a dense and chewy texture
Old-fashioned oats: have a flatter shape that is the result of their being steamed and then rolled
Quick-cooking oats: processed like old-fashioned oats, except they are cut finely before rolling
Instant oatmeal: produced by partially cooking the grains and then rolling them very thin
Oat bran: just the outer layer of the oat grain that resides under the hull
Any of these choices can make you a healthy meal, but as you know with other food sources, the less processing usually means a higher nutritional benefit.
Try adding oatmeal to a shake, smoothie or to your favorite yogurt. Look for creative ways to add this food that will make you feel full longer. Add some oats to your regular baking recipes, like muffins and cookies.
Try to use oatmeal as a grain replacement in any meal. Prepare your favorite quinoa recipe and substitute oatmeal as the grain! Enjoy the benefits of oatmeal! You’ll quickly notice that your body will transform and you’ll be much healthier!
