Oats are among the most versatile grains and foods out there. You can eat them raw by making overnight oats and adding them to smoothies, or you can eat them cooked by making the traditional oatmeal. You can also use them to make granola, protein balls, breakfast cookies or muffins… and they make a great soup or mushroom gravy thickener.
The best part is that oats are very nutritious. They are rich in protein and fiber, thiamine, biotin, copper, magnesium, phosphorus, selenium, zinc, and they have a very high manganese content. They also contain phenolic acids, which are strong antioxidants and help fight inflammation.
Oats are gluten free, so they can be enjoyed by people with gluten sensitivities. Do check that the packaging says they are gluten-free since different grains may be processed in the same facilities, and there is always a risk of cross-contamination.
You can find oats in different forms: steel cut, rolled, instant, flour, oat bran, oat milk… As with all whole foods, the less processed they are, the better they are for you. That being said, steel cut oats and old-fashioned rolled oats have the same nutritional content. Instant oats may have some fiber removed, same as some commercial oat flour. If you need oat flour, just grind it yourself in a spice grinder or in your blender to preserve its nutritional content. When it comes to oat milk, most nutrients are lost with the pulp, which is why commercial oat milk has added nutrients.
Oats Can Help Us Eliminate PFAS
Recently, oats made the headlines because of a type of fiber they are very rich in: beta-glucan. This is a soluble, gel-forming fiber that helps us grow good gut bacteria, lower our total and LDL cholesterol levels, and regulate our blood sugar. The reason oats got the spotlight is that this study showed that beta-glucan can bind to PFAS or forever chemicals in our digestive tract, helping us eliminate them. This is huge because PFAS are present in our drinking water and foods for various reasons, and once absorbed in our body, they stay there forever.
Nutrition Calculator: Oats
Use our personalized nutrition calculator to discover the percentage of daily nutrition needs you and your family can get from eating oats.
Nutrition needs vary according to age, sex, and whether women of reproductive age are pregnant or breastfeeding. Fill out the form below for yourself and for your family members to get personalized results.*
* Calculated as a percentage of the Recommended Daily Allowances (RDAs) as established by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Based on nutritional information provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture as an average of multiple oats samples.
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