- 1). Avoid any type of flavored oatmeal. Instead, opt for plain oatmeal seasoned to taste with your own flavorings fresh from your kitchen. Apple cinnamon spice oatmeal may sound delicious, but who needs the 13 grams of sugar? Instead, top plain oatmeal with diced fresh or dried apples, add a sprinkle of cinnamon, and breakfast is ready. Other favorite oatmeal toppings include creamy peanut butter, fresh berries, sugar-free applesauce, and dried fruit with chopped nuts.
- 2). The type of oats you choose is based on how much time you want to spend preparing oatmeal and your favorite oatmeal texture. All types of oatmeal have similar fiber content, and all contribute to a healthy diet.Steel-cut oats are cut into thirds instead of rolled into flakes and have a hearty, chewy texture. Plan on 30 minutes cooking time. Steel-cut oats can be prepared the night before and reheated in the microwave. You can even cook a big batch on Sunday and reheat during the work week for breakfast.Rolled oats, also known as old-fashioned oats, are rolled into flakes which cook in 10 minutes. Rolled oats have a less chewy texture, but the fiber and and nutrition content are unchanged.Quick-cooking or instant oats are rolled to a very thin flake and cook in under 5 minutes to a creamy texture. Avoid flavored varieties and stick with plan instant oats that you flavor yourself.
- 3). Improve the nutritional value of your oatmeal by cooking it with fat-free or skim milk instead of water. Milk contains essential nutrients such as calcium and vitamin D, and it also makes a creamier oatmeal cereal.
- 4). Read the nutrition facts label before you purchase oatmeal. Look at the list of ingredients, and only choose oatmeal where "whole grain rolled oats" are the first ingredient. Plain oatmeal contains no added vitamins or minerals. If you take a multivitamin, you don't need these additional nutrients anyway.
- 5). Look at the sugar content of the brand of oatmeal you're considering. Flavored oatmeals always contain added sugar. The best choice is plain oatmeal with your own, fresh flavorings added at home. Second Best is one of the newer lower sugar oatmeals with 50% less added sugar.
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