Health
benefits of Oats
Oat is a cereal
food which is sometimes called as common oat. Oat requires low summer heat and
it has much tolerance than other cereals like wheat, barley or rye. Therefore,
temperate regions are the best place for oat. Oats can be used in many types of foods. When it is crushed or rolled, it turns into oatmeal and this oatmeal is
used in various baked foods.
Oat is considered
very healthy as it is rich in several essential nutrients. Following are the
key health benefits of oat or oatmeal.
Blood
Pressure: As oat is rich
in fibre, it reduces high blood pressure or hypertension. As a result, need of
hypertensive medication is also reduced.
Blood Sugar: Control of insulin and blood glucose levels
is essential to prevent the complications that are caused by diabetes. Oat beta
glucan slows the rise of blood sugar level.
Blood
Cholesterol: The fibre,
which is present in oat, is beta glucan
and this beta glucan lowers the blood cholesterol level as well as lowers the
bad cholesterol level. It is also dicovered from new researches that the
antioxidants of oat also lowers the blood cholesterol level.
Weight
Control: When the fibre
of oat is digested, it turns into gel. For this gel, the stomach cannot get
empty shortly and one feels that he is not hungry and keeps himself away from
taking foods again. It means if you eat oat, you need not take food for longer
time which helps to reduce weight. Even those children who ate oatmeal were 50%
less to be overweight comparing to those children who did not eat oatmeal – according
to a research report.
Bowel
Function: As oat is rich
in fibre, it keeps the bowel movement regular. Regular eating of oat relieves us
from constipation.
Moreover, oat
increases the appetite control hormones, improves immune system defenses and
reduces the risk of type 2 diabetes.
Oat flour has
more fibre, iron, calcium and protein and less carbohydrates than other cereal
flour. One cup of oat flour has fibre 11 grams, protein 17.8 grams,
carbohydrates 79 grams, iron 7.7 mg, calcium 66 mg, thiamin 0.8 mg, riboflavin
0.13 mg.
