How Instant Oatmeal Can Help Weight Loss?
Instant oatmeal is a dish many people enjoy having for breakfast. Not only it is a delicious dish for breakfast, it is also a dish that helps in reducing your hunger, thereby helping you stick to your diet plan. This is because the fiber in oats forms gels to fill up. And it is these gels that delay the emptying of your stomach so that you don’t feel hungry quickly.
Having a bowl of instant oatmeal every morning increases your consumption of whole grains. These whole grains have fiber, various minerals and phytonutrients. These phytonutrients include lignans, plant sterols and stanols and antioxidants. The lignans are helpful in protecting your heart while stanols help in normalizing blood cholesterol levels. Eating about two bowls of oatmeal a day helps to reduce your cholesterol levels by six points in three months.
In addition to this, instant oatmeal also helps in reducing the medication in a person with diabetes. Instant oatmeal is also full of proteins and has about 50% of the amount of manganese a person requires in a day. Oatmeal also offers lots of iron, magnesium and thiamin. So it can be seen that instant oatmeal helps you to lose weight, and at the same time, provides you with your required nutrients. There is absolutely no cholesterol in a bowl of instant oatmeal as there is only three grams of dietary fiber in it. Oatmeal is a high source of phosphorus where you can find 133 mg of phosphorus and 42 mg of magnesium in it.
Instant oatmeal is a dish that does not have many calories. Though a portion of oatmeal has only 110 calories, it is a very filling dish. With a bowl of instant oatmeal, your hunger gets satisfied and you don’t feel hungry for quite sometime. The amount of fat in a bowl of oats is only two grams; so you don’t feel guilty of eating unnecessary fat in your breakfast.
The cooking time for instant oatmeal is also very short as they are precooked and pressed thin. Boiling water is used only for its reconstitution. Instant oatmeal usually has added sodium, and comes in the unsweetened, sweetened, flavored and unflavored form. The sweetened and flavored varieties have sugar, and so are not advisable if you are having instant oatmeal to help in weight loss. It is better to eat unsweetened or unflavored variety if you intend to lose weight with the help of oatmeal.
If you get bored eating instant oatmeal in your diet, you could try some variations in it by perhaps sprinkling it with cinnamon and adding some fat free milk. Instead of cooking oatmeal as a hot cereal, you could also bake oat brain using a low fat muffin recipe. This brings some variety in your diet and makes you feel better eating instant oatmeal while trying to reduce weight.
Posted: November 27th, 2006 under Daily Health Tips.
Comments: 5
Comments
Comment from John from East Amherst NY
Time: April 23, 2007, 6:05 pm
I was diagnosed with IBS ( irritable Bowel Syndrom ) about 5 years ago. I was told back then, that my diet would reduce the symptoms of severe bloating, cramps and irregular bathroom visits. I tried lots of different food with very little difference. Recently, i slowed my approach by focusing on a change at one meal per day. I started with Breakfast. OK, i reduced my McDonalds visit which was 4 days a week, and stopped eating sugared cereal. I replaced my morning breakfast with instant Oatmeal and a fruit. The oatmeal was constant every day ( different flavors ) but i changed the fruits each day. I chased it down with bottled water. Within a week i felt better with more energy. After about three weeks, i lost about two pants sizes. I only lost about 5LBS, but my stomach went down drastically and my bloating pains went away!!! I am happy with both results. Maybe in a month i can tell you i lost yet another 5lbs.
Love the oatmeal too. I think this snack or meal will be with me for many years.
Comment from SAM
Time: April 23, 2007, 8:11 pm
Hi John, i am glad that you love oatmeal. Instead of flavored oatmeal, i build my own oatmeal
You should do that too cause commercial oatmeal has a lot of sugar in it. Also, try to get the multi grain for more fiber.
Here is two other oatmeal recipes that i love
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_21335,00.html?rsrc=search
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_15945,00.html?rsrc=search
try to replace the milk or cream with skim mike and put some crushed nut or flaxseed for more nutrition.
Comment from Amanda
Time: October 14, 2007, 11:29 am
Hello. I am a huge fan of Quaker Weight Contrl Oatmeal. It comes in 3 yummy flavors and has 6 grams of fiber and 7 grams of protein. It is 160 calories per packet. It fills you more than other instant oatmeals with the added fiber and protein. It’s a perfect balance for weight control. I usually add a sliced banana into the oatmeal and then cook it for 2 mins in the microwave. It is just perfect! I also pour some soymilk on top after it comes out of the microwave.
Comment from Jane
Time: January 13, 2008, 8:51 am
I recently read, How To Eat Like a Hot Chick. I discovered through reading this that the little pre-fab packets are not so great compared to just plain instant oatmeal. I am eating oatmeal for weight loss and even though the packets are only 160 calories, half a cup of instant oatmeal is 150 calories and is about three times large of a portion!! Since filling me up is my goal, I have switched to the instant oatmeal. I can still spice it up with cinnamon or sweeten it a little with splenda. Now instead of a third of a bowl of oatmeal, I get a FULL bowl for same (actually slightly less) amount of calories!!
Comment from SAM
Time: January 13, 2008, 9:47 am
Yup, plain instant oatmeal is good. However, the best choice will be a multi grain hot cereal. Usually it is a mix of rye, barley, oats and wheats.
Let compare the Quaker oatmeal and Country Choice organic multi grain hot cereal. Both measure in half cup serving size
Quaker : 150 calories, 3g of fat (.5 saturated), 27 grams carbohydrate, 4g fiber
Country Choice: 130 calories, 1g of fat (0 saturated), 29 grams carbohydrate, 5g fiber.
Country Choice have more fiber that can fill you up better and less calories. However, most plain oatmeal don’t offer enough protein. You can fix it by add soy milk, soy bean protein powder or protein power that is low in sugar.
Also add some fruit in your oatmeal Jane. It is boring to eat cinnamon oatmeal everyday
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