Did your New Year’s resolutions include a pledge to lose weight? One step you can take toward achieving and maintaining a healthy weight is adjusting your diet to include more fiber from whole grain sources. Fiber has major weight loss benefits, but unfortunately most of us aren’t getting enough of it.
Whole grains are a good source of fiber, and evidence consistently points to a higher intake of whole grains being associated with lower body weight, lower body mass index (BMI) and less weight gain.
To get the most value from your whole grain buck, choose oats! Oats have the highest proportion of soluble fiber of any whole grain, with just half a cup of oats providing 4 grams of fiber – 13 percent of the 30 grams needed daily to put you on track for weight loss. All that fiber expands to take up space in your stomach, which helps you feel full and can improve your appetite control by boosting feelings of satisfaction after eating. It’s a lot easier to stick to your diet goals and reduce snacking and overeating if your stomach isn’t rumbling all afternoon!
Studies also suggest people who start their days with oatmeal may eat smaller portions at lunch, and consume fewer total calories throughout the day. If hot oatmeal isn’t your thing, try one of our Oat Smoothies – a delicious breakfast you can drink on-the-go. With half a cup of “hidden” rolled oats, each oat smoothie provides 13 per cent of your daily fiber.
And don’t forget – oats aren’t just for breakfast! If you’ve been avoiding high-fat favorites like cream soup, try our Creamy Vegetable Soup made with low-fat milk. Oats make this soup luxuriously thick, without a drop of cream!
These are just a couple examples of the delicious, inventive recipes in the Oats Everyday collection. With everything from tasty Breakfast Cookies to DIY Oat Burrito Bowls, we make it easy to eat healthy and stick to your resolutions, without sacrificing flavor.
Try eating one to two servings of oats every day and explore the weight loss benefits for yourself! Visit our Oats & Your Health page to read more about using oats for appetite control and weight management.