Oats is a healthy cereal because it contains a special kind of dietary fibre called betaglucan which has been proved to be able to reduce the cholesterol level in the blood of human beings. It is also useful in controlling blood sugar, improving satiety after a meal and it helps recuperation after a severe physical activity. We will get not only valuable nutrients like zinc, copper, manganese, Iron & thiamine but also antioxidants which reduce the occurrence of free radicals known to be harmful to the body. The bioactive compound avenathramide present in oats is believed to prevent atherosclerosis in the arteries.

Oats lower blood cholesterol
Oats help controlling blood glucose and insulin
Oats may also improve insulin sensitivity

Oats can help digestive mobility and eliminate the need for laxatives
Oats may contribute to feeling of satiety and weight management
Oats may help control blood pressure
Oats may reduce asthma risk in children
Oat Beta Glucans may improve immune system defences

One very important component of good healthy nutritious diet is dietary fibre. Dietary fibre comes from indigestible components of the food which is of plant origin. There are insoluble dietary fibre components as well as soluble dietary fibre components.

Oats contain more soluble dietary fibre like beta glucan than many other cereals like wheat, and barley. Betaglucan which is soluble in water and it can increase the viscosity and also build a gel. The insoluble fibre increases the motility of the food in the body. It also helps to maintain a healthy microflora in the stomach. For more information go to the following links.

“Whole grains contain all parts of the grain: the endosperm, germ, and bran. Whole grains are rich in fermentable carbohydrates that reach the gut: dietary fiber, resistant starch, and oligosaccharides. Most research that supports the importance of grains to gut health was conducted with isolated fiber fractions, rather than whole grains. Whole grains are an important source of dietary fiber and grain fibers such as wheat, oats, barley, and rye increase stool weight, speed intestinal transit, get fermented to short chain fatty acids, and modify the gut microflora. Wheat bran is particularly effective in increasing stool weight; wheat bran increases stool weight by a ratio of 5:1. In contrast, many novel fibers that are easily incorporated into beverages and foods increase stool weight only on a ratio of l:l. In vitro fermentation studies with whole grains have been published. Carbohydrates of oat bran (rich in β-glucan) were consumed by bacteria faster than those of rye and wheat brans (rich in arabinoxylan). Grain fibers were fermented more slowly than inulin, causing less gas production. Wheat is particularly high in fructo-oligosaccharides, while wheat germ is high in raffinose oligosaccharides. Some in vivo studies show the prebiotic potential of whole grains. Whole grain breakfast cereal was more effective than wheat bran breakfast cereal as a prebiotic, increasing fecal bifidobacteria and lactobacilli in human subjects. Wheat bran consumption increased stool frequency. Thus, the gut enhancing effects of cereal fibers are well known. Limited data exist that whole grains alter gut health.

By Joanne Slavin
Department of Food Science and Nutrition, University of Minnesota,
1334 Eckles Avenue, St. Paul, MN 55108. Work phone: (612) 624-7234.
Home phone: (952) 944-8134. Fax: (612) 625-5272. E-mail: jslavin@umn.edu
in Cereal Chem. 87(4):292–296

Health claims related to oat fiber beta-glucan and cholesterol reduction have been approved by FDA and EFSA. As one example, a U.S. study on thirty-six overweight middle-aged men compared the daily intake of oat and wheat cereal for twelve weeks. The men eating the oat cereal had lower concentration of LDL cholesterol compared to those in the wheat group.

In another study it was observed that oat milk containing insoluble as well soluble fibers decreased total as well as LDL cholesterol in healthy subjects along with reference.

Health claims related to oat fiber beta-glucan and reduction of postprandial blood glucose responses have been approved by EFSA. Control of blood glucose and insulin levels is of importance in reducing the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. It is also essential in preventing many of the complications associated with diabetes. In a German dietary intervention study with 14 patients who had uncontrolled type 2 diabetes and insulin resistance, the patients were introduced to a diabetes-appropriate diet containing oatmeal. A 40% reduction in insulin dosage was achieved – a reduction which was maintained even after 4 weeks on their own at home.

In another study where beta-glucans isolated from an oat drink were added to a fruit juice flavored drink the postprandial levels of glucose and insulin were significantly reduced.

In a randomized, double-blind, controlled clinical trial of ninety-seven men and women, in which half of the group consumed foods containing oat fiber, the other half ate control foods. The oat group showed improvements in insulin sensitivity, while the control group was unchanged.

In a controlled, blind, intervention trial where subjects received 7-8g of oat bran per day, 59% of the oat group had discontinued laxative use whereas the control group showed 8% increase in laxative use at the end of 6 weeks.

Researchers at the University of Sydney compared 38 different foods given to volunteers with respect to Satiety Index. Oatmeal rated #3 overall for making people feel satisfied and full, and it rated #1 in the breakfast food group.

Oats may also increase appetite-control hormones: Australian researchers studied fourteen people who ate a control meal and three different cereals with different levels of oat beta-glucan. They then collected blood samples for four hours after each meal, and found a significant dose response between higher levels of oat beta-glucan and higher levels of Peptide Y-Y, a hormone associated with appetite control.

In another study an oat based soup was introduced as main meal as part of a dietary regimen among overweight and obese subjects during a 23 weeks period. The new oat-based liquid food (soup) was very well tolerated as a part of the dietary regimen which resulted in a weight reduction from 83 to 77 kg. The dietary regimen also resulted in lower plasma insulin, triglycerides and LDL cholesterol levels.

In a study on 18 hypertensive and hyperinsulemic men and women for six weeks, the oat group showed a 7.5mm Hg reduction in systolic blood pressure and a 5.5 mm Hg reduction in diastolic blood pressure, while the wheat group was unchanged.

A Finnish study of 1293 children found that those introduced earlier to oats were less likely to develop persistent asthma.

Italian researchers reviewed existing research about the positive effects of beta-glucans on human health. They found that, in addition to reducing cholesterol and blunting glycemic and insulin response, beta-glucans boost the immune system against bacteria, virus, fungi, and parasites.