Category: Nutrition

Nutrition

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Oats | Complex Carbohydrates that Give You Slow Release Energy

Don’t you love starting your day eating food that is both nutritious and packed with energy? Read on to discover the energy benefits of complex carbohydrates.

But during those rushed morning hours, you may find it difficult to find an option that fulfils your desire for a healthy and energy-boosting meal.

But what if a single food suffices both of these body requirements? Wouldn’t it be great?

Are you wondering which food offers long stability and high energy levels? 

Oats are good for you, especially if you are striving to eat healthily. They are a food that provides slow-release energy; hence are the best foods for energy and a daily boost of vitality.

Want to delve deeper into how oats can be a one-meal solution to all your body’s needs? Then, keep reading because we at Oat Pantry will explore some amazing facts about oats today!

Choosing Foods That Give You Energy:

According to the National Institute of Health, the ideal meal should contain all five food groups be rich in carbohydrates, protein, and healthy fats. 

For breakfast, the type of carbohydrates to include are the ones like oats. They provide slow-release energy to keep you fuller for longer and provide a sustainable energy source. 

But wait! Don’t carbs have a bad reputation? That’s what you have been hearing all over social media platforms. Right?

Contrary to popular beliefs and myths, carbs are highly nutritious and beneficial as part of a well balanced diet. They provide enormous health benefits, BUT you should try to choose complex rather than simple carbs.

Foods like oats are complex carbs, they’re the best choice for breakfast and also one of the best food sources for energy.

Complex Carbohydrates | A Health Friendly Choice!

Carbohydrates are the biggest source of energy among the three macronutrients. They can be further divided into simple and complex carbs. Both simple and complex carbs are further broken down into glucose and utilised as energy. However, there is a significant difference between the two.

Difference between Simple and Complex Carbohydrates:

Simple Carbohydrates:

The major difference is that simple carbs are being used faster than complex carbs and provide an instant spike in blood sugar levels followed by a sudden fall. What does this mean?

Simple carbs like cookies, cakes, and pastries may provide an instant burst of energy. But only after a few hours of consuming these foods your energy levels will fall, making you hungry and exhausted all over again.

Complex Carbohydrates:

On the other hand, complex carbs like oats and porridge provide slow-release energy that helps to maintain stable blood sugar levels because of the high dietary fibre and beta-glucan (we will discuss Beta-Glucan later).

This means that once you eat your oats, you will stay fuller for longer and feel much more energetic than eating a doughnut or sugary bowl of cereal for breakfast.

The Mystery behind Oats Providing Slow-Release Energy:

According to the British Dietetics Association (BDA),

  • Low GI Foods: Score less than 55 
  • Medium GI Foods: Score between 56-69
  • High GI Foods: Score 70 or above

Oats and Porridge provide slow-release energy because they are high in dietary fibre and are low Glycaemic Index (GI) foods with a score under 55.

Lower Glycaemic index (GI) foods take a comparatively longer time to get absorbed in the bloodstream. This provides multiple benefits that include stable blood sugar levels, long slow-release of energy, and keeping one full compared to other breakfasts.

Oats have a high macronutrient profile that makes them the ideal breakfast! They contain:

  • 50-60% of Carbs
  • 11-15% of Proteins
  • 5-9% of Fats

Beta-Glucan | The Real Hero Behind The Curtains!

Oats contain a soluble fibre known as Beta-Glucan. When it enters the human body, Beta-Glucan dissolves in water and turns into a gel-like solution in the stomach. Beta-glucan has been proved to suppress appetite, increase satiety, and slower digestion. 

Health Benefits of Beta-Glucan in Oats:

Other than slowing digestion, Beta-Glucan in oats and porridge provides a long list of benefits.

According to a study conducted in 2018, consuming 5g/oat Beta-Glucan for 12 weeks can increase satiety, improve glycemic control and promote a healthy gut microbiota profile.

Other health benefits associated with the Beta-Glucan found in oats are:

  1. Improves cholesterol levels by lowering Low-density lipoprotein (LDL), also known as bad cholesterol. 
  2. Helps in weight management by decreasing hunger and increasing fat metabolism.
  3. Improves cardiovascular health by enhancing the elasticity of the blood vessels and improving blood flow throughout the body.
  4. Beta-Glucan provides long hours of satiety and energy by delaying stomach emptying and stimulating the release of peptide YY (a hormone that contributes to hunger and overeating). This means no snacking and eating high-calorie foods later in the day. 
  5. Improves cognitive performance with sustained energy levels and high alertness.

Oats | A Perfect Meal in a Bowl!

Oats and Porridge are packed with nutrients like iron, vitamin B6, B1, potassium, magnesium, calcium, manganese, phosphorus, copper, iron, selenium, and zinc. Hence, it is a goldmine of macro and micronutrients!

The Final Takeaway!

If you are looking for a breakfast that can provide you with all the goodness and a variety of options to cook from, then oats from Oat Pantry should be your go-to food! 

  • They are highly nutritious
  • Packed with loads of energy
  • Helps with weight management by increasing satiety levels
  • Lowers cholesterol levels and improves heart health
  • Helps prevent the risk of Type 2 diabetes, hypertension, stroke, and cancer. 

At Oat Pantry, we offer several oat flavours like apple pie porridge, chocolate orange, and cinnamon bun to satisfy your sweet cravings without any guilt.

So what are you waiting for? Head on to Oat Pantry and order your pack of highly nutritious oats today!

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Why Baked Oats Are A Superior Breakfast Food?

Baked Oats – A healthy breakfast treat that’s easy to prepare and delicious to eat!

Breakfast is widely regarded as the most important meal of the day, and what better way to begin it, than with warm, cake-inspired baked oats. Baked oats have been receiving a lot of great press. Maybe you’ve been making them for years, or maybe you’ve discovered them since they went viral on TikTok, but all we can say is, if you haven’t tried them yet, then you NEED TO!

At Oat Pantry we want to make oats so tasty that everyone would be excited about eating them every morning. With this in mind, you can’t go wrong with baked oats, full of flavour and nutrients—and with lots of soluble fibre, it keeps you fuller for longer. You can have all the health benefits without sacrificing taste!

Still not convinced?? Here are some more reasons why this breakfast choice is so impressive:

  • High in nutrition. Not only will your taste buds explode with joy, but your body will thank you too. They’re certified gluten-free, vegan-friendly, and contain all the vitamins and minerals your body requires to function properly. Plus, they are low in fat and high in fibre.
  • Provides you with energy. Forget that cup of coffee, baked oats have the power to wake you up, too. Oats and fruit are a great source of carbohydrates that your body can utilize for energy. Making them a great choice for breakfast or pre-workout.
  • It can be made ahead and in bulk. Whether you like to bake a huge tray of oats to enjoy throughout the week, or you’re making a single-serving for your breakfast in the morning. It’s easy to make a head of time and store in the fridge, covered for up to 3 days.
  • Easy to customise. With all our Oat Pantry Porridge flavours (available here) it has never been simpler to customise. You can also easily switch up topping ideas, or how about a delicious melty peanut butter or jam middle to your baked oats?

Are Baked Oats Healthy?

Yes, they’re a great source of fibre, which helps to keep you full for longer and makes it easier to achieve your weight loss goals. They are also packed with essential nutrients that keep your body healthy and fit.

How To Make Baked Oats?

Below you will find a fool-proof recipe which can be easily customised.

Ingredients:

• 40g Oat Pantry Porridge Oats of your choice
• 1 level tsp of maple syrup or your sweetener of choice
• 1 small egg or chia/flaxseed egg for a vegan friendly version (replace an egg with 1 tablespoon of chia seeds or ground flaxseeds mixed with 3 tablespoons of water and let the mixture sit for 15 to 20 minutes or you can prepare it the night before)
• 100g plain yoghurt of your choice

Method:

1. Preheat your oven to 200°C/fan 180°C/gas 6.
2. Place all the ingredients in a bowl and mix together well. Transfer the mixture to a small ovenproof dish. Then bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes, or until browned.

Further Recipe Inspiration:

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4 Amazing Health Benefits of Soaking Oats Overnight

Are you one of those people who often skip breakfast due to busy mornings and lack of time? If yes, you need to start soaking your oats overnight.

The first meal of the day is pivotal for boosting your metabolism and kicking off your day with energy. So, what do you need to digest so early in the morning?

The solution: Overnight Oats.

4 Health Benefits of Soaking Oats Overnight

  1. A bowl of soaked oats in the morning will support you in feeling full and satisfied. According to research, people who eat porridge for breakfast feel fuller for longer and consume fewer calories at lunch. 
  2. Soaked oats improve oat digestibility and allow nutrients in the grain to be more easily absorbed by your body. When you soak oats, it’s almost like you’re cooking them without heat. Soaking helps the starches break down and reduces the natural phytic acid, which may help your body utilize the oats’ nutrients much more efficiently.
  3. Overnight oats are healthier for your gut. Rolled oats contain 8.5 grams of resistant starch, by soaking rather than cooking, the oats retain more of the resistant starch. Resistant starch is a type of prebiotic fibre that your body cannot digest. Instead, it passes through your digestive system till it reaches your gut, where it is fermented by your gut bacteria, promoting a healthy gut environment.
  4. Oats are beneficial to one’s cardiovascular health. According to a study, a specific oat fibre known as beta-glucan has been shown to lower cholesterol levels by 5 to 10%.

Simple Way to Make Overnight Oats:

To prepare overnight oats, simply put porridge oats in a container, fill them with water, your choice of milk or yoghurt, and place them in the fridge. Remember to always soak the oats for at least 12 hours, but 24 hours is better. Adding toppings of your choice and there you have your overnight oats!

Looking for more overnight oats recipe inspiration:

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Complex Carbohydrates Unleashed – Oats, a Great Source

There are 3 macro nutrients that make up your breakfast bowl, dinner plate etc. fat, protein and carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are a major macronutrient as they’re your body’s preferred and primary sources of energy. Because of this, you should never avoid eating carbohydrates, instead you should think about the types of carbohydrates you are eating, as this can make a huge difference to your health. Simply put, complex carbohydrates are a much preferred source for your body over simple carbohydrates, But what makes complex carbohydrates special, and how are they beneficial for your health?

Carbohydrates are made up of three components: fibre, starch, and sugar.

Fibre and starch are complex carbs, while sugar is a simple carb. Depending on how much and the ratio of each of these is found in a food determines its nutrient quality.

As mentioned there are two types of carbs: simple and complex.

“Simple” carbs due to their composition are more easily digested by the body and can be found in fruits and dairy. Simple carbs are also found in processed, refined foods like sugar, pasta, and white bread. In comparison “complex” carbs take longer for the body to break down and are found in oats, vegetables, whole-grain pasta and bread, brown rice, and legumes.

Imagine a wave, the simpler the carbohydrate the higher the wave becomes, and the time it takes to hit its peak is reduced. That wave is your blood sugar level. With simple sugars, you may feel good, sometimes energetic. This is because your blood sugar wave is really high, however, what goes up must come down. To compensate for the wave getting high so quickly the body over compensates, insulin is released bringing the wave crashing down. This is where feeling lethargic and struggling to stay awake overtake. But this action isn’t helpful for sustaining energy levels and even for loosing weight, as it often makes you hungry again.

The comparison with a complex carbohydrate is that the wave builds slowly, once it hits its peak it just naturally falls again as the body doesn’t over react, meaning you have more energy, for longer, and don’t crash. This brings many positives like feeling fuller for longer and more sustained energy levels helping you throughout the day rather than a mad 1 minute.

Often you will see the term Glycaemic Index, aka GI, used when referring to whether a carbohydrate is simple or complex. This is a method of measuring the Glycaemic load of a food to give a more helpful chart to gauge how much a food type affects your blood sugar and subsequent insulin response. With this it is the lower the GI that relates to the higher the complexity of carbohydrate. So for oats, these would be classed as a low GI food type.

To summarise, what better way to start your day off than with a bowl of Oat Pantry oats that:

  1. Are a complex carbohydrate
  2. Have a Low GI
  3. Sustain energy levels
  4. Keep you feeling fuller for longer
  5. Provide your body with a great source of fibre (check this post out for all fibre benefits)
complex carbohydrates
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What are Overnight Oats?

If you’ve never had overnight oats, they’re essentially a no-cook version of making porridge. So, instead of cooking porridge on the hob or in the microwave, you soak the raw porridge oats with milk, plant-based milks or even yoghurt. The soaking process allows the oats to absorb the liquid and soften them enough to eat uncooked. You only need to let the oats soak and rest in the fridge for 2 hours. But, it’s ideal if you soak them overnight…hence the name overnight oats!

The next morning you wake up to a delicious, ready-to-eat, creamy jar of overnight oats. The consistency is like a porridge or pudding. It makes for an easy convenient breakfast that has a more dense and creamy texture than warm porridge.

The Benefits of Overnight Oats

  1. Oats are loaded with good-for-you nutrients like fibre, protein, magnesium, potassium, and omega 3 fatty acids, among other things.
  2. As a rich source of fibre, they help you feel fuller longer.
  3. Oats are high in a specific kind of fibre called beta glucan, which is linked to lowering cholesterol levels and overall heart-health.
  4. There are endless ways to be creative: You can fix overnight oats in dozens of different ways, so it never gets boring.  This is also a great way to add even more nutrition to your already healthy breakfast oats.  Try adding things like nuts/nut butters, berries, fresh or dried fruits, chia seeds, yoghurt, cacao nibs, protein powder! Get creative and have fun!
  5. You will never make unhealthy breakfast choices again: If you always keep some overnight oats soaking and ready, even if you’re running behind schedule you can so easily grab that jar of oats and a spoon, and you’re off!  No more temptation to grab something less healthy or more pricey while out and about

How to Make Overnight Oats

Overnight oats guide
  1. Add 40g of Oat Pantry Porridge Oats into a jar (we have these great clip top overnight oats jars available on our website here).
  2. Pour 100ml of your liquid of choice, whether that be milk, plant-based milk, yoghurt (you can even do a 50/50 split of milk and yoghurt) over the oats.
  3. Place the lid on the jar and leave to soak in the fridge overnight.
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Discover The Gut Health Benefits of Oats

Why look after your gut?

The health of our gut (and our gut microbes) can influence pretty much every other system and organ in our body. 

For starters, we know the gut is closely linked to the immune system, partly because around 80% of our immune tissue is found in and around the gut wall. Poor gut health is thought to be a factor in allergies and autoimmune conditions.

Why are oats a gut-friendly food?

Oats can be a fantastic gut-friendly food as part of a healthy, varied diet.

Here are two of their digestion-boosting benefits. 

1. Healthy bowel movements

Most simple of all, the high fibre content of oats helps us have regular and healthy bowel movements. As well as helping to remove toxins and wastes efficiently from the body, healthy bowel movements reduce our risk of problems such as haemorrhoids and disease in the colon. 

2. Feeding your gut bacteria

Within oats fibre represents six to nine per cent of the oat grain, half of which is the soluble fibre, beta glucan. Beta glucan is a soluble dietary fibre that’s strongly linked to improving cholesterol levels and boosting heart health.

The beta-glucan in oats forms a gel-like substance when it mixes with water. This solution coats the stomach and digestive tract.

The coating feeds good bacteria in the gut, which increases their growth rate and can contribute to a healthy gut.

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Nutritional Benefits Of The Mighty Oat

Oats are without a doubt one of the healthiest grains you can eat. They are an excellent source of fibre, antioxidants, and a good source of vitamins and minerals. They are a well balanced food source overall, but as with all foods, the more natural and less processed forms contain the most nutrients and tend to be better for us.

The vitamins and minerals contained in one portion of dry oats can account for a good proportion of your recommended daily intake. Half a cup of oats contains:

-20% of your recommended daily intake of iron

-39% of your vitamin B1, and

-20% of your recommended intake of zinc.

In addition, oats are an excellent source of carbohydrates, and actually contain 13 grams of protein in one half-cup serving.

It’s All About The Fibre

Increasing your fibre intake is another good reason to consider adding more oats to your diet. Since fibre cannot be digested, it helps to push along food and waste products through the gut. The inability to digest fibre also means that you are left feeling fuller for longer, and so you are less likely to feel the need to overeat.

The most beneficial form of fibre contained in oats is known as Beta-Glucan. It is known to reduce LDL cholesterol and total cholesterol levels in the blood, reduce blood sugar levels, and increase the growth of good bacteria in the gut.

Antioxidant Rich

Antioxidants and polyphenols, of which whole oats are one of the best sources, are also highly beneficial to your diet. You may usually think of antioxidant-rich foods as being things like fruit or vegetables, but oats are equally as good. Particularly important is one type of antioxidant found only in oats called avenanthromides, which are thought to help reduce blood pressure and improve the flow of blood around the body.


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Get More Fibre Into Your Diet With Oats

Fibre has evidence to show that its effects bring such things as: lowering cholesterol, blood pressure, reducing the risk of heart disease and strokes. It has also shown to aid gut health through feeding the good bacteria, of which in turn creates protective substances, and also research has shown that increasing your intake of this can reduce your risk of bowel cancer by 20% (based on a 90g/day increase).

Fibre also helps to keep you feeling fuller for longer, since fibre cannot be digested, it helps to push along food and waste products through the gut. This inability to digest fibre means that you are left feeling fuller for longer, and so you are less likely to feel the need to overeat.

Fibre can be found in many places, so if you’ve a varied and balanced diet, you’re on the right track and the variety of foods will be doing some good. However, even if you’re one of those people, it appears we’re all just not eating enough of it!

How much should I be eating?

Research has shown the average UK consumption is 18g per day. That is 60% of what it should be, 30g per day.

The advisory intake does vary for children, so check out the table below for the little ones.

If you’re looking to increase your fibre intake the best foods to introduce into your diet, or just eat more of, are foods such as porridge, breakfast cereals, sweet potato, beans and pulses, vegetables like peas, broccoli, fruits, seeds, and nuts.

Oats are a great source of fibre

According to the British Dietetic Association (BDA), one of the best tips for increasing your fibre intake is to have a high-fibre cereal such as oats at breakfast, as well as to add fruit to your cereal.

For example, half a cup of oats (contain around 9g fibre) with 80g raspberry’s (provides an extra 2-3g fibre). Therefore, a bowl of porridge or granola could be a great way to start your day with helping you immediately hit 1/3 of your daily requirement.