question from a foreigner- Oatmeal (I hope I'm at the right sub-forum!)

[m-tinkerbelle]

hi everyone!

So here's the thing. I'd like to know how to make low-fat Oatmeal.

I'm from Spain and I just came back from a wonderful week at DL, and as a souvenir I brought home an incredible addiction to Oatmeal. We don't have that in my country, but I've been doing some research for recipes and I bought 0%fat milk, oats and sweetener. So, I grab a pan and basically put 40 g of oats (1.41 ounces), and half a cup of milk, I turn the heat on and just stir and stir until the oats simmer and get soft. I add sweetener and that's pretty much it, though sometimes I need to add more milk because it gets too solid or sticky.

Sometimes I add strawberries or raisins.

My doctor doesn't know much about oats since we rarely add those to our diet but he says that as long as they don't have added sugar and are plain natural oats I shouldn't have problems with my weightloss plan. He doubts that I should have oatmeal every day if I want to lose weight, but he confessed he doesn't know much about the "weird" foreign meal. He told me I get all the fiber I need through the two pieces of bread a day he added to my diet, but I'm willing to give the bread up because I love oatmeal so much.

What do you think? should I cook them with water and add less milk? The way I make it... is it enough to make me gain weight?

I have hypothyroidism (I'm taking levotyroxine as indicated by my doctor) and high cholesterol. My doctor gave me two months limit to lower my cholesterol but he believes I'll need medication, since I've been on a diet since August and my cholesterol only gets higher and higher (normal low-fat diet, and lots of daily exercise)

I already lost 55 pounds and I'm needing to lose 33 more pounds to be on my ideal weight (132 pounds). I know I can do it but I got SO addicted to oatmeal!

I was thrilled to find plain oats in my local supermarket! (they sell old fashioned Quaker oats, which are expensive since they're imported from the US) and some local brand. Fortunately they don't sell instant oats though I'm not interested in those to say the truth.

I'm wondering if I should keep my addiction aside for a few months until I reach my goal weight I know it's very healthy but... will it keep me from losing weight?

I've been cooking oatmeal all week, I could live eating oatmeal! lol I've never been this addicted to anything!

Since most of you are from the U.S., I thought here it was the best place to clear my doubts

thanks a lot!

 

[lovetoscrap]

Wow, it is really interesting to read about differences in other countries. Here in the US Oatmeal (oats) is actually encouraged by doctors to help lower cholesterol. It is a good grain with lots of fiber. It is very versatile and great with a lot of different things like fruits and nuts.

I eat a bowl of oatmeal for breakfast often. I use a specific type that adds other grains to it but I also like to have plain oatmeal. Instant is not great to use so no problem that you can't find it-- it has been so refined that it doesn't provide all the benefits that the regular oats do. Oatmeal keeps me filled up longer than many other things so I find that I eat less after I have a bowl of oatmeal.

I like mine made with milk and with brown sugar the best. For weight loss I use a 0 calorie sweetener though. It is good with cinnamon or sugar free maple syrup, many fruits (I love bananas), yogurt, and other things. I sometimes make a large batch of it on the weekend and then refrigerate it. I take out a serving each morning, add a little more milk and heat in the microwave to make a quick and easy breakfast. I don't "stir and stir" mine, I just let them simmer and stir occasionally to be sure they don't stick.

There is another type of oats called Steel Cut or Pinhead Oats that are very popular for healthy eating/dieting because they are even less refined than Oatmeal and therefore you get more of the grain and the health benefits. I tried it once and didn't care for it but want to try it again because I think it was the way I cooked it that was the problem

As long as you are eating oatmeal as a part of a healthy diet and in moderation it shouldn't sabotage your weight loss plans and may help your cholesterol. It shouldn't be a problem to replace a bread serving with oatmeal. Just curious, what type of bread did he recommend?

Now I am in the mood for a bowl of oatmeal-- haven't had snack yet so maybe that is what I will have!

 

[rubato]

hi everyone!

So here's the thing. I'd like to know how to make low-fat Oatmeal.

I'm from Spain and I just came back from a wonderful week at DL, and as a souvenir I brought home an incredible addiction to Oatmeal. We don't have that in my country, but I've been doing some research for recipes and I bought 0%fat milk, oats and sweetener. So, I grab a pan and basically put 40 g of oats (1.41 ounces), and half a cup of milk, I turn the heat on and just stir and stir until the oats simmer and get soft. I add sweetener and that's pretty much it, though sometimes I need to add more milk because it gets too solid or sticky.

Sometimes I add strawberries or raisins.

My doctor doesn't know much about oats since we rarely add those to our diet but he says that as long as they don't have added sugar and are plain natural oats I shouldn't have problems with my weightloss plan. He doubts that I should have oatmeal every day if I want to lose weight, but he confessed he doesn't know much about the "weird" foreign meal. He told me I get all the fiber I need through the two pieces of bread a day he added to my diet, but I'm willing to give the bread up because I love oatmeal so much.

What do you think? should I cook them with water and add less milk? The way I make it... is it enough to make me gain weight?

I have hypothyroidism (I'm taking levotyroxine as indicated by my doctor) and high cholesterol. My doctor gave me two months limit to lower my cholesterol but he believes I'll need medication, since I've been on a diet since August and my cholesterol only gets higher and higher (normal low-fat diet, and lots of daily exercise)

I already lost 55 pounds and I'm needing to lose 33 more pounds to be on my ideal weight (132 pounds). I know I can do it but I got SO addicted to oatmeal!

I was thrilled to find plain oats in my local supermarket! (they sell old fashioned Quaker oats, which are expensive since they're imported from the US) and some local brand. Fortunately they don't sell instant oats though I'm not interested in those to say the truth.

I'm wondering if I should keep my addiction aside for a few months until I reach my goal weight I know it's very healthy but... will it keep me from losing weight?

I've been cooking oatmeal all week, I could live eating oatmeal! lol I've never been this addicted to anything!

Since most of you are from the U.S., I thought here it was the best place to clear my doubts

thanks a lot!

I use oatmeal in my weight loss plan. I either eat the steel cut oats, or I eat an instant oatmeal with low sugar. I eat it every single day, no matter what. It's one of my favorite things. It's healthy and I would recommend it on any weight loss plan. Enjoy your new addiction!

 

[afnaechiquita]

Oatmeal is one of the best foods you can eat for any healthy diet. I generally start my day with a banana, a bowl of instant low-sugar oatmeal (made with almond milk), and a glass of juice. It keeps my stomach satisfied much longer than anything else.

In regards to your specific weight-loss plan, it all depends on what your plan is and how grains fit into it. A bowl of oatmeal, prepared with milk, is likely around the same amount of calories as your two pieces of bread, depending on the bread. I am not a doctor though

 

[Callymum]

I'm SCOTTISH so Oatmeal is pretty much old news around here.
We use It for making Porridge, I also use pinhead oatmeal in a scots recipe from my Mum in a stuffing for Roast chicken. It is a low cholesterol food if eaten with a healthy diet and as others say our Docs would have us eating it every day.
The Scots Original way to eat porridge is with salt instead of sweet( not great for the Cholesterol).

Another idea I have seen is using coconut milk/water for a natural sweetness from the coconut.

This link has a page with all the benefits listed easily to see which includes weight loss.
http://eatmoreoats.com/health.html

 

[tekoa]

I eat oatmeal most mornings for breakfast. I don't add sugar. I will usually add a small box of raisins and some cinnamon. Sometimes bananas, strawberries or blueberries. An easier way for you to make it is in the microwave. Put half a cup of oats in a bowl then add 1 cup water stir and cook in the micro for 3 minutes. Comes out great every time. I buy the organic oatmeal from Trader Joe's.

 

[bumbershoot]

Here in the US I can find steel cut oats imported from Ireland, so you might be able to find those as well. I wonder if you can order them from amazon.co.uk to be sent to you?


Oatmeal is definitely used here as a weight loss and cholesterol-lowering food. Also, 2 pieces of bread for daily fiber requirements? That's some fiber-rich bread!

 

[m-tinkerbelle]

Thank you all for the replies! And sorry for not login in back since my last reply I've been having oatmeal every day after spending a couple of months with almost no grains (i thought that would help me lose weight) turns out that no matter what i do i don't lose a significant amount of weight so i went back to enjoy my daily oatmeal (yeaaahh!!!)
I now have it with soy milk and i love it it tastes great so i don't think I'll be buying any imported variety (thank you all for the suggestions)

Mmm delicious stuff!!! My husband doesn't like it but I'm totally hooked on it i eat all kinds of berries now thanks to this new addiction (i don't usually like them at all but they taste great mixed in oatmeal with cinnamon) so it only gets better and better each day
My next health checkup is in january, i really hope oatmeal helped me improve my bad cholesterol levels and i also hope my doctor finds the reason why i can't lose much weight, hopefully it will all be a matter of tweaking my levotyroxine dose.

So ... I'm glad it's not the oatmeal's fault!!!

 

[ohMom]

m-tinkerbelle.....I agree with all the great comments already said on oatmeal. I'm glad you found an American food that fits into your healthy eating, since I'm pretty sure you don't like peanut butter

I say that, in fun, as we have had the delight of hosting two Spainards at our home for my daughter's school exchange program.....the first would not even try peanut butter, the second took it home to Spain and her sister loved it though she did not.

I really just wanted to reply and say "Hola" in my American accent, we visited your country last summer and loved the time we spent there!