Are oats a healthy choice for breakfast?

They say that breakfast is the most important meal of the day.

In my books, any meal is a good time to include nutrient-dense foods that keep you happy and healthy!

So, are oats a good healthy choice to have for breakfast?

The answer is absolutely oats can be a great addition to any breakfast (*maybe don’t add them into your coffee).

Let’s look at some of the potential health benefits of oats along with how to easily include them in your breakfast.

The health benefits of oats

There’s plenty of research out there showing how healthy oats are.

So let’s now run through some of the benefits the humble oat has to offer:

• Oats are nutrient-dense. They contain significant levels of vitamins and minerals including manganese, magnesium, iron, zinc, folate, vitamin B1 and vitamin B5
• Oats contain a good amount of fibre, along with some protein
• Whole oats are rich in antioxidants, including a group called avenanthramides. These antioxidants may help to lower blood pressure and reduce inflammation
• Oats contain a type of fibre known as beta-glucan. Beta-glucan has been found to reduce cholesterol levels, reduce blood sugar levels, increase feelings of fullness and encourage growth of good bacteria in the gut

That’s a pretty impressive list for one little wholegrain!

One thing to note is that oats can be a problem for people with Coeliac disease.

If you have Coeliac and have not been tested with oats, you really should seek the advice of your healthcare professional.

Now onto how you can add oats to your breakfast meals.

How to add oats to your breakfast

Want more oats in your life?

Do you finding yourself sitting at work, gym or out in the park pondering on how you can add more oats into meals?

You do, that’s great, here’s some ways to add oats to your morning meal.

Porridge

This is an ideal breakfast for the cooler months.

It’s as easy as adding some oats to water or milk of choice to a pot and then cooking on a low heat until ready.

Try adding flavours such as cocoa to your porridge to make it even tastier, then serve with some fruit, nuts, seeds and/or honey on top.

You can also microwave oats as well, but I suggest avoiding instant oats with lots of flavours and sugars added.

Overnight oats

Love the idea of porridge, but don’t have the time or maybe it’s a bit warm for you at the moment?

Overnight oats is where it’s at for you in this instance.

Simply pop some oats in your liquid of choice, along with any flavours, fruits, nuts or seeds you’d like.

Put it in the fridge overnight, and like magic - your breakfast is ready when you wake up!

Oat-based granola blend

Another good option is to make up your own muesli or granola using oats.

Combine oats with your favourite nuts, seeds, dried fruits and spices.

If you want to make it into a granola, combine a sweetener such as honey to make it sticky and bake on a low temp.

Then store it in an airtight container and you’ll have a tasty breakfast ready to make in 30 seconds – just add in your milk of choice or some yoghurt!

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Is it ok to add oats to your smoothies?

Is this the best breakfast oats and berries smoothie ever?

Just add 3 of these smoothie cubes to your favourite smoothie recipe

Brekkie muffins

Oats can be a great addition to your breakfast muffins.

You can use your favourite breakfast muffin recipe and it’s as simple as topping it with oats.

Or you can substitute some of the flour in a recipe with whole oats or oat flour (make your own – just blitz the oats into a powder!).

Oat breakfast smoothies

A smoothie might be not first thing that comes to mind when it comes to investigating if oats are a healthy choice for breakfast.

But oats are a great way to bulk up your favourite breakfast smoothies with fibre.

A good ratio to start with is a quarter cup of oats per 300-500ml of smoothie and play with it until you find your preferred texture and level of fullness.

Oats are a healthy choice for breakfast

Whichever way you look at it, oats should be a welcome addition to anyone’s breakfast.

They keep you full and have so many health and digestion benefits too.

And, of course, you could always Super Cubes your oat breakfast ideas by adding three of the Berry Digest Smoothie cubes, a quarter of a cup of oats and 350ml of water.

Or (here’s a method that’s even easier), you could just follow this world-famous Banana Oat Blueberry Breakfast Smoothie recipe.