Why is oatmeal bad for you?

Oatmeal is bad for you

It turns out that eating as much oatmeal as you can stomach isn't as good as you've been led to believe.

Why oatmeal is bad for you

1. Oatmeal consumption can lead to weight gain
2. Added sugars spike your blood sugar and raise blood pressure
3. Sweeteners cause weight gain and become addictive
4. Oatmeal is high in carbohydrates
5. Refined oatmeal contains unhealthy ingredients like preservatives, flavors and artificial ingredients
6. Refined or processed oats don't contain the same nutrients as raw oats 
7. Eating carbohydrates first thing in the morning will lead to weight gain and unstable blood sugar

Oatmeal can make you put on weight

Self.com explains that eating oatmeal for breakfast can sabotage your weight loss efforts. This is mostly due to the things that we add to our oatmeal to improve its taste.

Added sugar

One way that oatmeal can lead to weight gain is the fact that people add sugars to it. People do this to make it more palatable. The high sugar content in oatmeal with added sugar will spike your blood sugar. This causes you to crave more sugar throughout the rest of the day.

Starting your day with a sugar-filled meal will spike your blood sugar and cause it to drop shortly afterwards. This will lead to sugar cravings and restart the cycle every few hours. Your body stores all the excess sugar as fat after each cycle. The body cannot burn fat when blood sugar levels are too high.

It's all about the sugar content.

Artificial sweeteners

Using artificial sweeteners instead of sugar is just as bad as sugar itself. They make you gain weight, reduce your taste for healthy food, increase your risk of diabetes and raise your chances of getting metabolic syndrome (which is a cluster of issues like increased blood pressure, high blood sugar, abnormal cholesterol and obesity). They are also highly addictive. Click on the link for more information.

People think that oatmeal is healthier than it actually is

Oatmeal is considered a super food. This gives people the idea that they can eat as much of it as they want. Anything more than the recommended daily consumption of 6 ounces of oatmeal per day (or half a cup of raw oats) can put you past this limit. Many people eat more than this in a single serving. Eating more than what your body needs will turn oatmeal into an unhealthy portion of food.

Excess calories will be stored as fat and excess weight gain has many negative health consequences of its own.

Moderation is everything.

Oatmeal is not a healthy breakfast option

One of the reasons why too much oatmeal consumption becomes unhealthy is the fact that it is so high in carbohydrates. 12% of raw oatmeal is pure carbohydrate.

Carbohydrates are not the best thing to eat for breakfast

Breakfast is the first meal that you eat after hours of fasting (eating nothing during sleep). The first meal of your day should be low in carbohydrates and sugars, high in proteins and contain moderate levels of fat. Oatmeal is the exact opposite: It is high in carbohydrates (and high in sugars if some is added for taste) and low in both proteins and healthy fat.

Carbohydrates for breakfast are unhealthy

Your liver stores sugar in the form of glycogen. When you don't give the liver enough time to deplete glycogen stores, all of the extra carbohydrates and sugars get turned into fat. Sugar is addictive. Your body will crave more foods that contain sugars and carbohydrates because it never dips into its fat stores.

How long does it take for liver glycogen stores to be completed?

Your body stores carbohydrates in the form of glycogen in the muscles and the liver. After some time, your liver will start to break these glycogen stores down for energy. Once these stores are depleted, your body turns to fat for energy. It takes 18-24 hours of fasting for liver glycogen to be depleted and only 90 minutes of medium-to-high intensity exercise for liver glycogen to be depleted. When liver glycogen stores are depleted, your body switches to burning fat as its primary energy source.

Fat is burned when glycogen stores are depleted.

Nutritional content of oatmeal

100g (or 3.5 ounces) of oatmeal contains:

• 68 calories
• 1.4 grams of fat
• 0.2 grams of saturated fat
• 0.4 grams of polyunsaturated fat
• 0.4 grams of monounsaturated fat
• 49 milligrams of sodium
• 12 grams of carbohydrates
• 2.4 grams of protein
• 0.5 grams of sugar
• 61 milligrams of potassium
• 1.7 grams of dietary fiber
• 8% of your daily Vitamin A requirement
• 8% of your daily Calcium requirement
• 33% of your daily Iron requirement
• 15% of your daily Vitamin B 6 requirement
• 6% of your daily Magnesium requirement

Refined oats are not as healthy as raw oats

Refined oats are more pleasing to the palate and are easier to prepare. Most people consume refined or processed oats thinking that they are healthy options.

Why refined oats are less healthy than raw oats

1. Refined oats are easier to digest. Their energy content is dumped more quickly into your system. This turns most of its calorie content into fat instead of being used for energy. It also spikes your blood sugar.
2. They have their bran (the outer layer of skin) and the germ (the inner seed) removed. This takes away the beneficial fiber and a lot of its vitamin content. 
3. Refined oatmeal is also dramatically higher in carbohydrates. This increases the amount of calories that each serving contains.
4. Refined versions of oatmeal often contain added sugars, sweeteners, preservatives and flavors. All of these additives are bad for your health and turn a 'super food' into a 'junk food'.

Is oatmeal good for you at all?

Oatmeal might not be the best choice for breakfast because of its carbohydrate content. Adding additional ingredients like sugar, sweeteners, flavors and preservatives to oats also make them unhealthy. Raw oats can, however, be a healthy addition to your diet.

They make a great choice to replace carbohydrates after exercise, for example. Here are some of the reasons why raw oats may be beneficial to your health:

1. Oatmeal contains soluble fiber

Soluble fiber is good for you. It is known to lower the risk of heart disease, slow the rate of digestion and keep you fuller for longer. In the long-run, this should decrease the amount of time that it takes before your body craves food again and therefore lower your overall caloric intake. Soluble fiber lowers your LDL cholesterol (the bad cholesterol).

2. Oatmeal is recommended for diabetics because it does not spike blood sugar in the same way as simple carbohydrates

The slow-digesting effects of oatmeal make it more suitable to diabetics, compared to other typical breakfast options. This is because it does not spike blood sugar in the same way that refined carbohydrates or simple, added sugars do in typical cereal-based breakfasts.

3. Oatmeal is recommended by many nutritionists

Many nutritionists recommend oatmeal for breakfast because it keeps you fuller for longer. This is due to its soluble fiber content. The less you eat, the less weight you should gain and the fewer spikes you would have in your blood sugar.

I hope that I have given you the information that you need to make an informed choice when it comes to your health. If you have learned anything new or would like to add to the discussion, please write a comment below. Stay Strong!

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Artificial sweeteners lead to weight gain

Artificial sweeteners are worse than you think.

Artificial sweeteners might seem like a great way to enjoy the foods that you like without the added calories of sugar, but they do more harm than good.

How artificial sweeteners can lead to weight gain

1. Sweeteners cause you to eat more sugar throughout the day
2. They train your palate to crave sweeter foods
3. Artificial sweeteners decrease the desirability of healthy foods that aren't as sweet
4. Sweeteners teach us to eat for the sake of sweetness instead of the need for nutrients
5. Studies show that they can be more addictive than cocaine
6. Diet sodas increase the risk of diseases like metabolic syndrome, high blood pressure, high blood sugar, obesity, abnormal cholesterol, unbalanced triglycerides, heart disease, stroke, insulin resistance and diabetes

Sugar-free sweeteners may lead to weight gain. Here's how:

1. Artificial sweeteners cause you to eat more sugar

We tend to reward our positive behaviors with negative ones. You think that since you've chosen a sugar-free option, it is okay to eat something with sugar in it later on. People who use artificial sweeteners are still more likely to follow a diet that is high in sugar, compared to those who don't use artificial sweeteners at all. "I haven't had anything with sugar all day, so this cake shouldn't be that bad for me."

A study cited by Harvard Medical School (linked above) showed that people who drank diet sodas were two times more likely to be overweight than those who didn't.

2. Sweeteners train your palate to crave sweeter foods than usual

Everything comes at a cost. Artificial sweeteners are no different. When you satisfy your cravings for something sweet during a meal with a sweetener, you aren't addressing the problem. You're masking it.

You increase your tolerance to sweetness when you use an artificial sweetener. You use a sweetener instead of losing your interest in foods with sugar - which would happen naturally when you avoid sugar. You could retrain your brain to associate non-sweet foods with actual food instead.

This, in turn, will decrease your desire for foods that aren't as sweet as those have artificial sweeteners. Fruits taste less sweet on their own and non-sweet foods like vegetables become less desirable to palates that grow accustomed to tasting sweetness at every meal.

Sweetness is dangerously addictive.

3. Artificial sweeteners reduce our association with caloric intake

The overuse of sweeteners can cause you to crave something sweet - even when your body doesn't need any more calories. You end up eating more food to satisfy your taste buds than you what would to satisfy hunger. 

This leads to a cycle of eating for enjoyment over eating to nourish your body. People who don't use artificial sweeteners at all are more likely to eat solely out of hunger and lose interest in the idea of food when they don't have a need for more calories.

4. Artificial sweeteners are highly addictive

This study found that artificial sweeteners can be more addictive than cocaine. Rodents were given cocaine to make them addicted to the substance. They were then given the choice between an artificial sweetener and cocaine. Most of them chose to satisfy their craving for sweetness via the artificial sweetener instead of cocaine.

Sweeteners can be more addictive than cocaine.

5. Diet Sodas are linked to a greater risk for metabolic syndrome and diabetes

Artificial sweeteners may cause the very diseases that they were meant to prevent. This study found that daily diet soda consumption increased the risk of metabolic syndrome (increased blood pressure, high blood sugar, excess body fat, abnormal cholesterol, unbalanced triglyceride levels, increased heart disease and stroke risk) and Type 2 Diabetes (severe insulin resistance).

Artificial sweeteners may do more harm than we realize.

Is sugar better than artificial sweeteners?

Does this mean that we should ditch artificial sweeteners and go back to sugar? Absolutely not! The solution lies in addressing the cause. This is how you can learn to enjoy eating foods that are good for you instead of the foods that are high in sugars or sweeteners.

How to decrease your taste for sugar and artificial sweeteners

Sugar and sweeteners desensitize your taste for sweetness. In the long-run, you will require more sweetness to get the same amount of satisfaction in a meal. The opposite is also true. You can teach your taste buds to become more sensitive to sweetness so that you enjoy the natural flavors of food. With the right diet you will learn to enjoy the foods that nourish you and improve your overall health.

1. Train your palate to enjoy foods that aren't so sweet

The first step to decreasing your taste for sweetness is to realize that you have grown accustomed to foods that are too sweet. The next step is to start eating foods without sugar and sweeteners. At first, they will taste bland. Your taste buds regenerate completely every 10 days to 2 weeks. If you can stick it out for this amount of time, foods will start tasting sweeter on their own.

Drink your coffee or tea without sugar or sweeteners. It will taste bland for the first few days, but you will learn to enjoy the taste of these beverages without the need for sugar. You will soon associate these drinks with the natural taste - instead their sweetened versions.

2. Learn to enjoy foods without added sugar and sweeteners

Sweet is not the only pleasurable taste. Sour, salty and bitter can also be enjoyable. Try out a variety of different foods (without added sugar or sweeteners) and you will be pleasantly surprised that you can enjoy foods without the need for sweetness.

Non-sweet foods that you might enjoy:

1. Greek yogurt
2. Pineapples and other whole fruits (natural sugar is not as harmful as added sugar)
3. Pickled foods (which can be good for your gut bacteria)
4. Proteins
5. Unsweetened, herbal teas
6. Sushi
7. Vegetables

3. Cut out foods that have hidden added sugar

Sugar is addictive. The more sugar you consume, the harder it will be to cut it out of your life. A great way to reduce your sugar intake (and therefore reduce its addictive effects on your body) is to avoid the foods that have too much added sugar.

When you eat fewer foods that have added sugar, your body will learn to operate without the need for sugar and sweetness. The best way to do this is to cut out as many processed foods as possible because most processed foods contain sugar.

Replace salad dressings with lemon juice or vinegar. Buy raw vegetables instead of warming them up from a can. Avoid baked goods and pastries as much as possible. Choose real meat instead of processed meat.

4. Recognize what your cravings are telling you

Your desire for something sweet could indicate a sharp drop in your blood sugar levels. If this is the case, you might want to try intermittent fasting to reduce your drops in blood sugar.

Sugar cravings may also indicate low energy. In this case, try adding exercise to your daily routine so that your body learns to make more energy on its own.

5. Find another kind of enjoyable activity

Many people struggle to let go of unhealthy foods because they feel that food is the only thing that they can enjoy. Boredom is a big cause of unhealthy eating. Find other activities that you can enjoy instead. This may include starting a hobby like reading a book or dancing. 

Doing other activities that you enjoy will help you to find pleasure in things that don't involve food. These activities will distract you from your desire for sweetness and may even add to your life in other ways. Your hobby might turn into another form of income, help you to shed some extra pounds or benefit the community around you.

End the endless craving for sweetness.

Conclusion

Artificial sweeteners will not help you to stay healthy because they don't address the cause. Train your taste buds to appreciate the natural flavors of healthy food and try to determine whether your cravings for sweet things are the symptoms of something else like depression, stress or a lack of energy. Stay Strong!

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