Professor Tim Spector has warned about the importance of choosing the right oats. These small nutritional powerhouses have been associated with numerous health benefits, such as reducing cholesterol, improving blood sugar levels and lowering blood pressure.
However, not all oats are equal, and some ultra-processed varieties in supermarkets may lack these beneficial nutrients. The co-founder of the health app Zoe, addressed a frequently asked question on Instagram: are oats healthy?
Professor Spector said, “Are oats healthy or not? It’s a question I often get asked, and it depends on your own body, how you respond to sugars, and it also depends on which ones you pick.
“So you’ve got sachets of highly refined ground-up ‘instant’ oats that you can make just in a few minutes. And you’ve got the bran with a huge difference in fibre, which means they have a different effect on your body.”
According to the doctor who wrote the Food For Life cookbook, research shows that consuming enough oats can lower your blood cholesterol, reports The Express.
But he cautioned, “You do have to eat a lot of oats to do that,” adding, “It’s because they contain beta glucan, which ends up lining your intestines to stop those lipids, those blood fats, getting into the system rapidly.”
In an Instagram post, Tim further highlighted that the type of oats you select can significantly influence their impact on your health.
Professor Spector has given some advice for those looking to improve their gut health, suggesting: “For gut health, I would recommend higher fibre options such as oat bran (approximately 16g of fibre per 100g), or whole rolled oats (10g fibre per 100g).”
He pointed out that these choices are preferable over refined ‘instant’ oats, which contain less fibre at about 3g per 100g and are absorbed more quickly, potentially leading to a larger blood sugar response.
Tim went on to say: “Of course, you can always add extra fat, fibre and protein via your porridge toppings to help mitigate this and slow your blood sugar response, like adding a dollop of Greek yoghurt and a mix of different seeds to your porridge during cooking (which also provides some plant points towards your 30/week).”
He also mentioned the benefits of beta-glucan found in oats for reducing blood cholesterol, emphasising that the type of oats consumed is significant.
Instant oats only contain around 4g of beta-glucan per 100g, while oat bran contains up to 10g/100g, Tim explained.
Concluding his recommendations, the health expert said: “The final note on this is if you eat oats regularly and it’s accessible to you, I would recommend choosing organic oats as studies have found oats contain five to 10 times more glyphosate than other grains.”