The dark side of the food industry is that sometimes a few things trick us into thinking that we are eating something healthy or natural, but in reality, we are not. We often hear health experts and nutritionists talking about healthy eating and how adding some superfoods to our diet may help promote our health. Of course, it is important to get the right type and amount of foods to maintain a healthy lifestyle, but one should be mindful of what are they including in their diet. Consulting nutritionists always helps - you will be more aware of what you are eating, and can make your choice whether or not you want to eat it.
One of the superfoods, oatmeal is a very famous food among health conscious people and fitness enthusiasts, but there is something about oatmeal that makes it 'not-so-healthy' for us to consume. No, we don't disapprove of its health benefits or how it helps facilitate weight loss, keeps heart healthy and is an excellent source of healthy carbs and fibre. The tricky thing is to know which kind of oats, or oatmeal, possess all these qualities, and which ones are just unhealthy. The store-bought packaged oatmeal that is available in different flavours is the real culprit here. This can be really annoying because when we go to a grocery store to buy oatmeal, after looking at all the different kinds of flavours and brands stacked on a shelf, it gets really difficult to decide which one to pick. Even the packaging and labelling makes it so difficult to map out which oatmeal is clean (and healthy) and which one is not.
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The store-bought packaged oatmeal that is available in different flavours is the real culprit here.
According to Consultant Nutritionist Dr. Rupali Datta, "oats that are produced or manufactured in factories are processed and may lose their nutrients. In fact, the labels that say they are "natural" are not always so." There are many oatmeal brands that say they are 100% "organic" and have ingredients like cane sugar, maple sugar, or natural flavours. The taste-enhancers and artificial preservatives that are added in these oatmeal brands or flavours are definitely not good for our health, plus we don't know where they are sourced from. The easiest way to find which oatmeal is better is by looking out for its ingredients. So something like "veggie flavour" is most likely to contain not just vegetables in it. But fret not! The easiest way to avoid this problem is to just buy plain, unsweetened oatmeal. You may add healthy, natural sweeteners or fresh veggies and homemade spices mix to spruce the flavour of your oatmeal. This way you will be able to keep a check over the quality of the ingredients that you are adding to your oatmeal.
(Also Read: How to Eat Oats for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner)
Make sure you make smart choices when it comes to food and health. Most people think that they are making healthy choices by eating store-bought flavoured oatmeal, but unfortunately, this is one "unhealthy" food that they should be aware of.
(This content including advice provides generic information only. It is in no way a substitute for qualified medical opinion. Always consult a specialist or your own doctor for more information. NDTV does not claim responsibility for this information.)