Saturday, October 22, 2016

Health Benefits of Oatmeal: Appetite



Oatmeal for breakfast results in greater fullness and lower calorie intake at lunch

A new study suggests that your breakfast cereal choice may affect how full you feel and how much you eat for lunch, especially if you're overweight. According to new research published in the latest issue of the Annals of Nutrition and Metabolism, scientists found that having oatmeal (Quaker Oats Quick 1-minute™) for breakfast resulted in greater fullness, lower hunger ratings and fewer calories eaten at the next meal compared to a calorie-matched breakfast of a ready-to-eat cereal (RTEC) - sugared corn flakes.

Scientists from the New York Obesity Nutrition Research Center at Mount Sinai St. Luke's Hospital randomly assigned 36 subjects (18 normal weight and 18 overweight) to each receive three different breakfasts. The breakfasts consisted of 350 calories of similar amounts of carbohydrates, fat and liquid from either quick-cook oatmeal or sugared corn flakes. A third control breakfast was only 1.5 cups of water. To evaluate appetite, ratings of hunger and fullness were obtained at frequent intervals before and after the breakfast until a lunch test meal 3 hours later. Researchers measured the calorie intake of the lunch meal consumed to compare the effects of the corn flakes, oatmeal or water breakfasts. Blood samples were collected just after each of the appetite ratings to assess levels of glucose, insulin, acetaminophen (a marker for how quickly the breakfast emptied from the stomach into the intestine) and various hormones related to appetite, in response to each breakfast.

"Our results show that despite eating the same number of calories at breakfast, satiety values were significantly greater after consuming oatmeal compared to sugared corn flakes. After three hours, subjects reported the same level of hunger after having a corn flakes breakfast as they did when they consumed only water," explained lead researcher Allan Geliebter, PhD, research psychologist in the Department of Psychiatry at Mount Sinai St. Luke's Hospital. "Interestingly, the results were more pronounced for the participants who were overweight, suggesting that overweight individuals may be more responsive to the satiety effects of the dietary fiber in oatmeal."

The results showed statistically significant higher ratings of fullness, lower ratings of hunger, and 31% fewer calories consumed at lunch after consuming oatmeal compared to sugared corn flakes or water. The overall satiety effect was greater among overweight subjects, who consumed 50% fewer calories at lunch after eating oatmeal.

The study authors suggested that the greater satiety effect of oatmeal cereal compared to sugared corn flakes or water might be due to a slower gastric emptying (oatmeal took longer to leave the stomach). Given that the results were more pronounced in overweight subjects, researchers suggested that a longer-term weight control study testing daily oatmeal for breakfast is warranted.


A new study revealed that your cereal choice at breakfast might have an impact on how much you eat for lunch. Newly published research in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition showed that a hearty bowl of instant oatmeal helped curb food intake at lunch better than a leading oat-based, cold cereal -- even when each bowl provided the same number of calories.

The statistically significant results of the randomized, controlled crossover study (n=47) showed that a 250-calorie instant oatmeal serving (with an additional 113 calories of skim milk) enhanced satiety and feelings of fullness, reduced the desire to eat and may even lead to a lower caloric intake at lunch, compared to a 250-calorie serving of cold, oat-based cereal, also served with an additional 113 calories of skim milk.

"The satiety benefits of instant oatmeal alone were important findings," remarked lead author Candida Rebello, MS, RD, of Pennington Biomedical Research Center at Louisiana State University. "When we took it a step further and evaluated the intake four hours post-breakfast, we found that after consuming instant oatmeal, the participants chose to eat significantly less at lunch compared to those who ate the oat-based, cold cereal."

After an analysis of the types of fiber in each cereal, the researchers suspected that the higher molecular viscosity of the beta-glucan in the instant oatmeal contributed to its satiating effect over the oat-based, cold cereal. Authors stated that the processing of the cold cereal might lead to changes in the oat fiber that reduced its ability to enhance satiety.

Researchers presented the participants with a lunch meal of their choice - turkey, ham, roast beef or vegetable patty sandwiches and a calorie-free or calorie-containing beverage, alongside potato crisps and cookies. The lunches offered ranged from 2,600 to 2,800 calories and participants were told to "eat to satisfaction." Total calorie intake was significantly lower following consumption of instant oatmeal compared to the cold cereal, as were fat and protein intake. Grams of carbohydrate and total weight of the foods were not significantly different.

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