Claims
- Helps decrease blood cholesterol levels
- Soothes skin irritated by eczema, dryness, minor burns, or other conditions
- Promotes relaxation
- Traditionally, oats have been used to treat nervous exhaustion and insomnia
- Aids in nicotine withdrawal
Theory
Any medicinal qualities of oats can be attributed to the seeds of the plant that contain chemicals called alkaloids (thought to account for the relaxing effect of oat supplementation) and saponins. The seeds are also rich in iron, manganese, and zinc, and oat straw is high in silica. Its high fiber content is thought to contribute to the cholesterol-lowering effect of eating oatmeal on a regular basis.
Scientific Support
The majority of scientific studies performed with oats relate to their role in helping to lower blood cholesterol, particularly LDL (“bad”) cholesterol. Oats, like psyllium (used in Metamucil and other laxatives) and pectin are all types of soluble fiber. In one study, after only 3 servings of oatmeal, levels of LDL cholesterol were decreased slightly. However, this effect was not different from the effect of either psyllium or pectin fibers. Other studies support the use of eating oatmeal for lowering cholesterol levels, particularly in individuals with high cholesterol. It is important to note that an overall healthy diet is required – oatmeal ingestion cannot counteract high intake of animal fats containing cholesterol
Safety
Oatmeal has high nutritional value at every stage of life. Furthermore, oats have not been associated with any adverse effects.
Value
Avena sativa is sold in tablet, liquid pellet, and in extract form, and can be quite pricey. It makes more sense, from both nutritional and financial perspectives, to buy a box of oatmeal and to eat it for breakfast, to make or buy oat bran cereal or muffins, or to sprinkle oat bran onto your favorite foods and soups. As an aid for irritated skin, many specialty soaps contain oats, as do many bath soaks (such as Aveeno).
Dosage
In addition to eating oats in the form of oatmeal as a breakfast cereal, oats can be made into a tea by boiling one heaping tablespoon with a cup of water. Many forms of oat supplements can be purchased at health food stores.
Oats have saponins(such as avenacosides), flavonoids, minerals, alkaloids (such as gramine and avenine), steroidal compounds, vitamins B1, B2, D, E, carotene, gluten, starch and fat. All of these make oats an excellent nerve tonic to recover from nervous exhaustion due to stress, depression, lethargy, or as a preventative in difficult times to cope better. Oatmeal is also useful externally to relieve itching from rashes such as chicken pox, eczema, cold sores, and shingles.
[b]Effect of Avena Sativa (oat bran) enriched diet on the atherogenic lipid profile in patients with an increased coronary heart disease risk.[b]
AIM: To study whether an Avena Sativa bran enriched diet has a specific effect in lowering total and low-density lipoprotein cholesterols, in addition to caloric and fat restriction. We performed a randomized, controlled, parallel-group, single-centre study in which 1,994 patients from the Wehrawald Hospital were screened and 235 met the criteria male gender, hypercholesterolemia, and overweight. All patients in the Hospital took part in a 4-week standardized inpatient lifestyle health program consisting of dietary intervention, increased physical activity, and health education. Caloric restriction, fat modification, and Avena Sativa bran supplementation were part of the nutritional regimen within the lifestyle health program. Ninety-nine patients were randomized to a fat-modified diet with caloric restriction and a daily intake of 35-50 g Avena Sativa bran and 136 patients to a fat-modified, Avena Sativa-free diet with caloric restriction. Fifty-three male overweight but normocholesterolemic subjects were selected as controls.
RESULTS: The most significant decreases in total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and apolipoprotein B were found with the combination of the fat-modified and Avena Sativa enriched food.
CONCLUSIONS: Added to a fat-modified diet, Avena Sativa bran within a practical range of intake significantly reduces total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and apolipoprotein B.
A Brief History of Oats - And How You Should Eat Them
By By John K. Williams, Ph.D.
First published at www.johnberardi.com, Sept 5 2003.
Despite their widespread praise by nutritionists and bodybuilders alike, oats have a humble origin. They were the last of the major cereal grains to be domesticated, around 3,000 years ago in Europe, and apparently originated as weeds that grew within cultivated fields of various other crops.
Part of the reason why people were slow to embrace oats is because they go rancid very quickly, due to the presence of natural fats and a fat dissolving enzyme present in the grain. As a result, they have to be processed immediately after harvesting. The fats in oats are relatively healthy, with a lipid breakdown of 21% saturated, 37% monounsaturated, and 43% polyunsaturated.
Greeks and Romans considered oats to be nothing more than a diseased version of wheat. Oats were a lowly horse food for the Romans, who scoffed at the "oat-eating barbarians", or those pesky Germanic tribes who eventually toppled the West Roman Empire. Come to think of it, the Romans were never able to conquer the Scots. Big oat eaters, those Scots. Oats 2, Romans 0.
Even today, less than 5% of the oats now grown commercially are for human consumption. The chief value of oats remains as a pasturage and hay crop, especially for horses. Thousands of years and several empires later, most people still haven’t caught-on.
Oats, What’s So Good About Them?
Oats contain more soluble fiber than any other grain. Soluble fiber is the kind that dissolves in water, so the body turns it into a kind of thick, viscous gel, which moves very slowly through your body. One of the benefits is that your stomach stays fuller longer, providing satiety. Soluble fiber also slows the absorption of glucose into the body, which means you're going to avoid those nasty sugar highs and lows. Last but not least, it inhibits the re-absorption of bile into the system, forcing your liver to get its cholesterol fix from your blood. This serves to lower your blood-serum cholesterol. See what the Romans were missing?
Oats also have anti-inflammatory properties, and have been clinically shown to help heal dry, itchy skin. Oats are also highly absorptive, hypoallergenic, and help to soften skin, if you’re into that kind of thing. They have the best amino acid balance of all the cereal grains, and thus can be used as water-binding agents in skin care products. Oat grains and straw appear in shampoos, dusting powders, moisturizers, cleansing bars, breast implants, and astronaut suits. OK, maybe those last two are figments of my imagination.
Varieties of Oats
From least to most processed:
Oat groats, or whole oats: These are minimally processed, only by removing the outer hull. They are very nutritious, but need to be cooked and/or soaked for a long period of time to so you don’t break your teeth on them.
Oat bran: This is the outer casing that is removed from the groats. The bran is particularly high in soluble fiber. Oat bran is very versatile, and can be used with groats or alone, and as an addition to baking recipes, or even raw in shakes.
Steel-cut oats, or Irish oats: These are groats that have been chopped into small pieces. They have a firmer texture than rolled oats, and people in the know often prefer them for hot oatmeal cereals and muesli. A tip on purchasing steel-cut oats: some of the name brand varieties are prohibitively expensive, so search for them in bulk, where you can fill an entire tub of protein powder (empty it first!) for $5 US.
Rolled oats, or old-fashioned oats: These are oat groats that are steamed and flattened with huge rollers so that they cook quicker, in about 5 to 15 minutes.
Quick oats: These are groats that have been cut into several pieces before being steamed and rolled into thinner flakes, thus reducing the cooking time to 3-5 minutes. While they cook quicker, any oat aficionado will tell you that they lack the hearty texture and nutty flavor of the less-processed varieties.
Instant oats: These are made by chopping groats into tiny pieces, precooking them, drying them, then smashing them with a big roller. They need only be mixed with a hot liquid. They usually have flavorings and salt added. All of this processing removes all traces of the original texture and rich flavor of the groats.
Oat flour: Oat flour is made from groats that have been ground into a powder, and contains no gluten so it does not rise like wheat flour. It can also be made at home by grinding rolled oats into a powder in a blender.
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