For Your Heart - Oats

As January comes to a close I remind people to review the goals they set earlier this month and remember them as we roll into February, and the sweets begin to make a come-back: heart disease is the number one killer of both men and women in the United States.

Since 1963 congress has require the president to proclaim February as “American Heart Month.”

On both this and my other blog NewMexicoWellness.blogspot.com, I will be dedicating the rest of January and all of February to heart disease issues.

When I have patients/clients see me for high cholesterol, one of the many risk factors for heart disease, I often get the question: “does oatmeal really help lower cholesterol?”

Yes, it does, so here is what you need to know about oatmeal. It has soluble fiber in it, which helps lower your LDL cholesterol, the one you want to be low. It seems that soluble fiber helps lower the absorption of cholesterol.

Ideally we would be getting 10 grams of soluble fiber a day, and we would find it in not just oatmeal, but also oat bran, apples, pears, prune, and beans to name just a few sources. Fruits and vegetables in general are going to help you out - big surprise!

Your oatmeal would ideally be the cooked kind rather than the instant, but they both have soluble fiber in them. Adding some fruit would add more fiber. You could also have a cold cereal made from oats or oat bran, like Cheerios.

In 1997, the FDA authorized the claim on foods such as oat bran and whole oat, as well as oat flour to bear health claims such as "Soluble fiber from foods such as oat bran, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, may reduce the risk of heart disease." or "Diets low in saturated fat and cholesterol that include soluble fiber from oatmeal may reduce the risk of heart disease." The stipulation was that “diets low in cholesterol and saturated fat” must be included in the claim.

The evidence/research has shown that one needs to consume about 3 grams of soluble fiber per day to have an effect on cholesterol levels (it does help with other things too). The primary issue is that the effect lasts only as long as the consumption. So, consuming oatmeal every day for a week or a month, just won’t be beneficial a year from now. To have the benefit long-term, it needs to be consumed on a regular basis long-term, not temporarily.

Here is a recipe for you to try this weekend: Cherry-Hazelnut Oatmeal from Cooking Light.

To your heart health – Eat Well, Live Well, and Be Well