Have Oats For Breakfast To Control Blood Sugar Levels

Expert-reviewed by Ashwini S.Kanade, Registered Dietician and Certified Diabetes Educator with 17 years of experience.

Oats are one of the best sources of soluble fibres. They also help to lower your cholesterol levels, reduce glucose absorption, prevent or better manage your constipation problems and decrease the risk of childhood asthma. ^(1,2)

Here are some of the benefits of eating oats for breakfast:

1. A nutritious and balanced breakfast option: 

• Oats contain well-balanced nutrients for your overall health.
• They are an excellent source of proteins and contain very little fat as compared to other grains.
• They provide all the necessary nutrients, without added calories, to keep you going throughout the day.

2. Contain soluble and insoluble fibres: 

• Oats are packed with a large quantity of soluble fibre called beta-glucan, which helps to control cholesterol levels and stabilizes glucose levels in the blood ⁽³⁾.
• Fibres found in oats also give you a feeling of fullness and increase the growth of good bacteria in the gut.
• Oats also contain insoluble fibre that improves your intestinal health and fights constipation⁽²⁾.

  3. Helps in relieving constipation:

• The change in mmodern-dayeating habits has made constipation very common in people of all age groups.
• As per studies, consuming oat bran daily can significantly improve your gut health and relieve constipation.^(1,3)
• Especially for elderly diabetic patients, oat bran can be a nice alternative to laxatives, a medicine for relieving constipation.

4. Helps in managing weight:

• We all know that eating a filling breakfast in the morning can reduce the urge to eat throughout the day, and this is exactly what oats does. It helps you in weight loss.
• This makes oatmeal an excellent breakfast option as it is not only delicious but also keeps you full for longer.
• Beta-glucan in oats increases the production of a satiety hormone called peptide YY (PPY), which leads to reduced calorie intake, thus helping in managing weight and reducing the risk of obesity.^(2,3)

Not just oats, these fibre-rich foods will also help control your blood sugar levels.

How to eat oats for breakfast:  

1.  Oats with milk, flax seeds and fresh fruits: 

• Consuming oats with lukewarm milk, fresh fruits, nuts and seeds is a great combination of protein, carbs and fibre.
• Add half a cup of dry roasted oats along with nuts and flaxseeds to a cup of lukewarm milk without sugar.
• Add about 1 teaspoon of flaxseeds to this mixture and serve.

Here’s how you can make your home cooked meals more diabetes-friendly.

2. Oatmeal methi upma: 

• Heat a pan and add oil.
• Add cumin, mustard, roasted chana dal and a pinch of hing in the oil.
• To this tempered mixture, add about 1 teaspoon of methi seeds and roast till it turns reddish brown.
• Add some vegetables like carrot, green peas, tomatoes, onion, french beans and cabbage.
• Cook them till they are soft.
• Add a cup of dry oats and stir fry them for about two minutes.
• Sprinkle flavouring agents like red chilli powder, salt and pepper.
• Garnish with coriander leaves and lemon wedges and serve hot.

Here are some more diabetes-friendly breakfast recipes to start your day on a healthy note!

While oats is a super food when it comes to fighting or better managing diabetes, eating it the regular way every day can be quite boring. Try these delicious alternatives that will still give you the goodness of oats and help you stick to your healthy eating plans.

References:

1. Cho SS, Qi L, Fahey GC, et al. (2013) Consumption of cereal fiber, mixtures of whole grains and bran, and whole grains and risk reduction in type 2 diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular disease. Am J Clin Nutr 98, 594–616.CrossRef.
2. Romero, A.L., Romero, J.E., Galaviz, S., Fernández, M.L. Cookies enriched with psyllium or oat bran lower plasma LDL cholesterol in normal and hypercholesterolemic men from Northern Mexico. J Am College of Nutr. 1998;17:601–608.
3. Jenkins, D.J.A., Kendall, C.W.C., Vuksan, V., Vidgen, E., Parker, T., Faulkner, D., Mehling, C.C., Garsetti, M., Testolin, G., Cunnane, S.C., Ryan, M.A., Corey, P.N. Soluble fiber intake at a dose approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for a claim of health benefits (Serum lipid risk factors for cardiovascular disease assessed in a randomized controlled crossover trial) . Am J Clin Nutr. 2002;75:834–839.

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