The Power of Oats: How to include them in your diet

September 18, 2019

Fibre is a type of carbohydrate found in plant foods. Although it cannot be digested, fibre is known to keep our digestive systems healthy by making them run like clockwork and help flush out our bowels. Gross I know. But so important. When the body doesn’t get the fibre it needs, this can result in constipation and may increase the risk of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), diverticulitis, heart disease and bowel cancer.

There are two different types of fibre and they have different roles in the body.

Soluble fibre helps to slow down the emptying process in our stomach, which leaves us feeling fuller for longer and regulate bowel movements.
Insoluble fibre absorbs water and helps soften the food in our bowels. It also helps to support regular bowel movements.

Fibre can have many health benefits, such as improving cholesterol and blood sugar levels and preventing diseases such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease and bowel cancer.

HOW MUCH DO WE NEED TO GET THESE BENEFITS?

The average adult male needs 30g of fibre per day and the average female needs 25g per day. Some find it difficult to meet their daily fibre requirements, however, we’ve got some simple hacks to help you increase your intake throughout the day…starting with a quick breakfast idea; overnight oats.

Oats are a type of wholegrain carbohydrate. For every half cup of oats, there is 4.5g of fibre…that’s nearly double the amount of fibre from 1 slice of wholegrain bread! Oats are super versatile and can easily be added to your breakfast or snacks.

If you’re not a morning or breakfast person, overnight oats may be a great option to help you spend less time preparing your breakfast and more time increasing your fibre intake. The purpose of overnight oats is to prepare your breakfast in advance so that in the morning, all you have to do is pack it and go, it’s that simple!

LET’S GET STARTED!

So to start things off we need a base, some milk and yoghurt, and then some fruit.

Your base: rolled oats (rolled oats are not processed, so they have a higher fibre content)

Your milk and yoghurt: milk (low-fat, skim, lactose-free, soy, almond or coconut) and yoghurt (natural, Greek, low-fat plain or coconut).

Your fruit: include any type of fruit, such as; berries (strawberries, blueberries or mixed berries), banana, pears, apples, or our raspberry chia jam.

Toppings: add a combination of your favourite toppings, such as; nut butter (Goodies Peanut Butter), Goodies Honey, Goodies Rice Malt Syrup, desiccated coconut, cinnamon, nuts/seeds or Goodies Cacao Nibs.

So now that we know what ingredients to include in our overnight oats, making them is easier. All you have to do is add your oats, milk and fruit to your container and combine. Then and add your toppings…it’s as simple as that! By adding fruit, nuts or seeds to your oats increases the fibre content of your breakfast even more and can help to reach your daily fibre needs!