Semicolon Stories

All About the Oats

January 8, 2010 at 8:40 pm Danielle B Leave a comment

A post about OATS for all of my semi-colon friends out there. (And others who don’t necessarily need to add a lot of fiber to your diet, if you know what I’m saying…)

Just a few pointers from my experience this past holiday regarding oats:

-steel-cut oats: If you eat them, don’t  make plans to go anywhere that evening. Oh they’ll give you a healthy dose of fiber and make you feel full, but you’ll have enough gas to blow up a blimp.

– rolled oats: These are great, and especially for making homemade granola. While I can’t say avoid them all-together, just eat in moderation. AKA – don’t make homemade granola and eat it for breakfast and snack while you’re on a roadtrip. Side note: I’ve tested three great granola recipes, and here’s my favorite.

– quick oats: These guys get the bad rap with health gurus, but honestly – they’re  worthy foods and I recommend eating them. These are the basic “Quaker Oats” you see at grocery stores. Although the original grain is the most broken down in this version of oats and lacks the same nutritional value as the others, they still make you feel just as full, provide you some fiber, help with the cholesterol AND are easily digestible. I recommend starting your day off with these bad boys if you don’t need a ton of fiber added to your diet.

The Key

I’ve learned that the trick is to stick with soluble fiber. Here’s the difference:

insoluable fiber: what’s most commonly known as fiber-producers. Found in whole grains, bran, lettuce, sprouts, seeds, nuts, etc. While it’s excellent for you, it’s also a GI-stimulant. So boys  and girls, if you’ve got a little (or even irritable) colon, you want to moderate these foods. Eat too much and they can ruin your plans in an instant.

soluable fiber: these foods will change form and somewhat dissolve in water. Example: quick oats. Mix them with water and they get mushy and change form. That’s a sign that they will be easy on the GI track. Foods like oatmeal, apples, peaches, oranges, carrots, etc. are what you want to fill up on to get some fiber in your diet and have a life.

Final remarks:

I’m not down on fiber, I actually encourage it. However, know how much you need, the different types, and when to eat it in order to not let it run your life. Especially if you’re a semi-colon.

For more fiberific info, read this study in the Washington Post.

For more info about soluable and insoluable fiber, read this.

Entry filed under: Uncategorized. Tags: digest, fiber, GI track, insoluable fiber, oats, semi-colon, soluable fiber.