Fast and instant cereals. Are instant cereals harmful?

The rhythm of modern life is so high that it does not always leave a person time for full-fledged cooking. It is at such moments that you have to use fast food products. In this regard, it is very interesting whether instant cereals are harmful or can you feast on them without fear? We will find the answer to this question in this article.

Classification of instant cereals

Compared to ordinary oatmeal, two types of the product in question can be found on store shelves:

• instant cereals that require cooking for several minutes,
• instant cereals, which are simply poured with boiling water and ready to eat in a minute.

It is worth paying attention here that oat grains, from which cereals are prepared, always undergo preliminary processing. In ordinary cereals, the outer too coarse skin is removed from the grains, however, the grain germs remain, which allows them to retain all the useful substances during cooking. In instant products, the grains are finely ground, which reduces the cooking time. What can we say about cereals, which are prepared instantly, because they are sold pre-steamed. That is why, it is enough just to fill them with boiling water before use. However, in this state, the product significantly loses its valuable qualities, and the basis of such a porridge is, in fact, one starch that swells when boiling water is added.

Harm of instant cereals

The low value of fast food, as well as instant cooking, is their main disadvantage. The fact is that starch, under the influence of gastric enzymes, breaks down to the simplest sugars, which has an extremely negative effect on metabolism, provoking obesity, and also affecting the endocrine system, that is, causing type II diabetes mellitus.

Moreover, oatmeal, according to nutritionists, is not the worst option. In other cereals made from grains of buckwheat, rice or wheat, there is even more starch. With the loss of the shell, as well as the germ of the grain, they sharply lose their valuable substances and dietary fiber.

Nutritionists generally do not recommend eating foods high in starch frequently. Especially in this regard, potatoes are dangerous. True, oatmeal is an exception to the rule, because it contains a large number of useful substances, including beta-glucans. The value of these polysaccharides lies in the ability to bind cholesterol, and then remove it from the body, thereby preventing the development of atherosclerosis and other vascular and heart diseases. Do not forget that oatmeal is rich in fiber, amino acids, as well as minerals and vitamins.

Meanwhile, you should not get carried away with instant oatmeal, as there is a risk of gaining excess weight. And this is a direct road to the development of diabetes. In addition, nutritionists do not recommend eating fast food products that contain. The fact is that manufacturers add a minimum amount of fruit to such products, and the aroma is provided by the addition of flavors. As a result, the body is more harmed than when using ordinary instant porridge. In this regard, it is much more useful to add frozen or fresh fruits or berries to it while cooking porridge at home.

Summing up, and answering the question of whether instant cereals are harmful, we can say with confidence that the harm from these products is much more than good, which means you need to eat them as little as possible, sparing no time to prepare full-fledged tasty, and most importantly, healthy dishes. Bon appetit!

"Oatmeal, sir!" In England, oats are one of the most popular ingredients for many dishes. Judging by the latest research, many people in our country also share the love of British people for oatmeal and consider it the best option for breakfast. Its benefits and harms have been proven by medical research. What are the consequences of frequent use of porridge?

Benefits of oatmeal

Nutritionists have long identified the beneficial properties of oatmeal:

1. low glycemic index. Therefore, doctors advise oatmeal for diabetes, as it maintains blood sugar levels;
2. calcium content, many children do not like to eat oatmeal in the morning, although it helps to strengthen teeth and hair;
3. a decoction of water flakes and honey prevents heart disease;
4. inositol contained in oatmeal or flour normalizes cholesterol levels, this does not allow cholesterol plaques to form;
5. the benefits of oatmeal are visible under stress, a healthy breakfast improves overall well-being;
6. saturation of the body with fiber, which prevents the occurrence of gastritis and ulcers. In case of poisoning, you can make a decoction in water from oatmeal, then drink it in small sips;
7. oatmeal to heal, it used to be believed that the preparation of a decoction of oatmeal treats stomach cancer;
8. cereal contains antioxidants that increase immunity;
9. the body quickly absorbs oatmeal. This means that the benefits of oatmeal lies in its diet.

Useful properties of oatmeal used in medicine

Slimming. Although oatmeal is high in calories, it controls the absorption of fats in the body. There are many diets for weight loss, which are based on oatmeal or oat milk. The benefits and harms in this case are not fully understood, since this is considered forced weight loss. The most common way to lose weight is 2 unloading (oatmeal) days a week. All day you can eat porridge and drink plenty of fluids. Decoctions of cereals also help, they can be consumed on an empty stomach every morning.

Treatment of hypertension. You can prevent an increase in pressure with the help of oatmeal broth. Pour a glass of oatmeal grains into a plate, pour 1 liter of unboiled, but purified water, then boil over a fire until half of the water has evaporated. Drink in the morning on an empty stomach half a glass of decoction.

Edema treatment. An instant decoction of cereals or oatmeal will help with this. A glass of cereal or cereal is poured with 5 glasses of cool water and put on fire for 15 minutes. After that, a spoonful of flour and honey is added and boiled for another 5-7 minutes. It is filtered, drink such a decoction in small portions throughout the day.

Harm of oatmeal

1. It is impossible to consume porridge in large quantities daily. Phytic acid, which is contained in cereals, does not completely absorb calcium in the body, washing out part of it from the bone tissue. High levels of phytic acid are dangerous for humans.
2. The bagged oats that are popular today do not contain essential vitamins and nutrients. It contains starch, entering the body, it breaks down into sugar, which raises the level of glucose in the blood, the pancreas cannot withstand such loads, after which an insulin reaction occurs.
3. There is a group of people who are contraindicated in the use of cereal cereals. This is due to exposure to gluten, which is found only in cereals: oats and oatmeal. Doctors gave the name to this disease - celiac disease, the symptoms are not immediately visible, at first they are mild, but already at a deep stage they make themselves felt, intestinal absorption at that time is finally destroyed and stops its activity, children are especially susceptible to this disease.

Today on the shelves of stores is the most diverse oatmeal. The benefits and harms of this product depend on the quality. When choosing cereals or cereals, you should pay attention to the name.

Oat flakes "Extra" are often divided into several varieties. One variety contains a thin oatmeal for quick preparation, so they cannot be kept in boiling water for more than 10 minutes. There are varieties with a high content of carbohydrates, the benefits of oatmeal are lost.

Hercules is separated from other varieties of instant oatmeal. The flakes are quite dense, so it will take more time to cook.

Important! When choosing instant porridge, make sure that the oatmeal or oatmeal is in an airtight container, as the product absorbs moisture. Watch the expiration dates, as they start from the moment of development, not packaging. Do not be too lazy (if the packaging is transparent) to examine the contents in the light. High quality flakes are white or cream. Already at home, smell the product, there should be no third-party odors.

What is the benefit of oatmeal for breakfast?

In the mornings, I don’t really want to eat, because the body has not fully woken up. But you still need a sufficient supply of energy before lunch, light porridge is perfect for this. At the same time, the abundance of proteins contained in cereals favorably emphasize the beneficial properties of oatmeal compared to sandwiches. If you eat denser and heavier food with oatmeal, the same fried eggs, then cereals contribute to rapid absorption.

The benefits of oatmeal are observed in diets, when the metabolism in the body is organized. Gastroenterologists have found out how useful oatmeal is: the presence of vitamins K and B improves blood clotting, normalizes kidney function. The body is strengthened, which is a guarantee of good health for the whole day.

Instant oatmeal is never boring. It can be cooked in water or milk, combined with fruits and honey, and the cereal itself is inexpensive. Children will love this breakfast for its originality and taste.

Are instant oatmeal harmful?

Due to the lack of time, people prefer instant porridge. Few people know that the benefits and harms of oatmeal in bags are different from the properties of a natural product. Porridges in bags have a low level of regulation in the body of metabolism, and you can forget about energy and good mood. Such porridge is quite convenient, one has only to pour the contents of the package into a plate and pour water, three minutes - the porridge is ready. For the mass production of this product, the grains are crushed and pre-steamed, which contributes to instant absorption by the body, of course, this is harmful. Sugar can be called the end product of the decay of such a “healthy breakfast”. High sugar levels make the pancreas work harder, which increases the risk of diabetes. Further, sugar turns into fat, and the benefits of oatmeal disappear.

If you are used to eating oatmeal in the morning, it is better to give preference to natural oatmeal. Cooking takes not so much time, but in the end you will get a high-quality, healthy and tasty product. With the right choice of cereals or oatmeal, as well as following the recommendations for preparing a hearty breakfast, you will have a good mood and a healthy body.

Some symptoms of the appearance:

• increased sweating;
• weakened immunity, frequent colds;
• weakness, fatigue;
• nervous state, depression;
• headaches and migraines;
• intermittent diarrhea and constipation;
• want sweet and sour;
• bad breath;
• frequent feeling of hunger;
• weight loss problems
• loss of appetite;
• night grinding of teeth, salivation;
• pain in the abdomen, joints, muscles;
• does not pass cough;
• pimples on the skin.

If you have any of the symptoms or doubt the causes of ailments, you need to cleanse the body as soon as possible. How to do it .

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Due to the constant rush and chronic lack of time, many people are forced to include fast food in their diet. Indeed, it will not take much time to cook them, but are instant cereals harmful? Consider this on the example of instant oatmeal.

Compared to ordinary oatmeal, two types of cereals are distinguished by quick cooking. Firstly, these are porridges for instant cooking. They are poured with boiling water and they can be consumed in a minute. Secondly, these are porridges, although they are fast-cooking, but still require cooking for three minutes.

Please note that oat grains, on the basis of which cereals are prepared, undergo special processing. From the surface of whole grains, the outer skin is removed, which is very rough and requires a long boil to soften it. If the processing ends at this stage, then we can talk about the preservation of useful nutrients in such flakes, because the germ of the grain and shell remain in them.

If we are talking about instant cereals, then the grains are crushed very finely. And for instant cereals even thinner. As a result, the porridge turns out to be already steamed beforehand. And if you pour boiling water over it, it will quickly absorb water - the porridge is ready! But you need to know that after hard processing, almost only starch remains in such cereals, which swells when hot water is added. It is easily absorbed by the body, and this is a big disadvantage of fast and instant cereals.

Starch is broken down by enzymes of the digestive tract to sugars, the excess of which negatively affects the endocrine system (diabetes mellitus), metabolism (obesity), etc.

Instant cereals made from other cereals contain even more starch than oatmeal. Grains of millet, wheat, rice, buckwheat are polished and crushed. Along with the loss of the germ and shell of the grain, dietary fiber and valuable nutrients leave.

According to the recommendations of nutritionists, the consumption of foods high in starch should be strictly limited. These foods include cereals and potatoes. Rolled oats are an exception to this rule, as they contain many nutrients, including beta-glucans. Their value lies in the fact that they bind cholesterol, thereby reducing the risk of developing cardiovascular diseases. In addition, oatmeal contains fiber, minerals and vitamins.

However, do not rush to get carried away with oatmeal, its excessive use can cause you to gain weight. This increases the risk of developing diabetes and heart problems. It is not recommended to use instant cereals, which contain berries or fruits, and especially dried fruits. Often their proportion is very small, and a variety of flavorings give fruity taste to porridge. Nutritionists advise buying regular oatmeal and adding frozen berries and fruits to it to taste. In this case, you can be sure of the usefulness of porridge.

The daily dose of beta-glucan is 3 g, which is contained in approximately 60 g of oatmeal flakes. However, you should not eat oatmeal every day to replenish the body with beta-glucan, because it is also present in other products (wholemeal bread, beer, whole grain bread, bran bread).

The harm of instant and instant cereals lies in the fact that most of the vitamins and biologically active substances are lost during the processing of grain. The grain is peeled, polished, crushed, exposed to high pressure and steam. All this is aimed at removing the hard shells of the grain and its germ, and in fact they contain valuable nutrients. As a result, it turns out that everything useful was removed from the grain, only starch remained, which needs to be sweetened and poured with boiling water. On the other hand, if there is no way to fully eat, then it is better to have a snack with instant oatmeal than with rolltons, hamburgers or chips.

Do not abuse snacks with instant cereals, their calorie content will quickly make itself felt on the hips, waist, buttocks.

I have to warn you - really healthy cereals and cereals in grains usually do not have glamorous packaging, they do not have the tempting word “Fitness” written on them, there is no “Fit” prefix, there is no piece of a thin belly that you have been dreaming of for so long, no mentions of vitamins in large print under the name and it is not even written that it is for weight loss.
Many fat people will have to step over themselves in order to buy “THIS”, because they always buy everything only if it says that it is for weight loss or fitness, for body shaping, or if at least a piece of a thinner belly is drawn there. It will be difficult for you to buy normal porridge, but I believe in you!

It will not be difficult for adequate people with a psyche not crippled by pink weight loss magazines to choose the right porridge and learn how to cook it properly. At the end of this article, I will give you a useful article on cereals to read, which tells in detail what kind of cereal to eat. This will help you learn more about cereals, what they are, which ones to choose and open your eyes to important nuances that you have always considered unimportant trifles. And in this article we will talk about instant cereals. We will learn how to cook healthy instant porridge in any conditions.

What you need to quickly cook a very healthy porridge

Learning how to cook healthy instant cereals

Why instant porridge is so healthy

The very method of cooking porridge is very helpful on business trips, on hikes, on long car trips, it will be useful for office plankton, indispensable for those whose life goes on tour and business trips, security guards, loaders, watchmen and in general for everyone who has a tight schedule and a minimum of free time . Except for those who always sit at home and those who are constantly followed by a mobile kitchen with a personal chef. You just have to know it, be able to do it, so that later you don’t whine that you don’t have the opportunity to eat normal porridge and you are forced to eat dry food and fast-resistance noodles from which health benefits are like goat’s milk.
And even if a mobile kitchen with a personal chef always follows you, then it will be useful to know exactly this method just in case, you never know. Chefs get sick, a wheel breaks in a mobile kitchen, you may run out of money to support servants, etc.

But what about other types of cereals?

Where to get boiling water?

NUANCES and ADDITIONS - it will be useful to know

While everyone is familiar with regular oatmeal, most rely on instant oatmeal for a quick and healthy breakfast. So, what exactly is the difference between regular oatmeal and instant oatmeal? Does instant oatmeal provide the same benefits as regular oatmeal? Do they have the same nutritional value?

Everyone knows about the beneficial properties of oatmeal - its high fiber content, its ability to lower cholesterol, and many other qualities. Therefore, oatmeal is becoming an increasingly popular hot breakfast item, especially during the cold winter months. There are several varieties of it:

• granular
• traditional
• fast food
• instant cooking

The difference between them lies in the kind of processing they go through.

Cooking time for oatmeal

Instant oatmeal, as the name suggests, is instant oatmeal. It is the speed of preparation that makes such oatmeal a popular breakfast. Just one minute is enough if you cook it on the stove, and two minutes if you just pour boiling water over it. Flattened or regular oatmeal, on the other hand, requires 10-15 minutes of cooking on the stovetop, as the flakes are larger and take longer to absorb water when cooked.

Degree of processing

Ordinary oatmeal is dried oatmeal, which is steamed and then passed through rollers that flatten it. Its chaff shell is removed, but the hard shell is preserved. Instant oatmeal, on the other hand, is also passed through rollers, pressed to a thin state, and steamed; however, it differs in the size of the resulting flakes. Such oatmeal is flattened very thinly and crushed into tiny fragments. Thus, the main difference between instant oatmeal and regular oatmeal is that the former is more deeply processed before reaching the consumer, while the latter is minimally processed.

Glycemic index of oatmeal

This is one of the main parameters in which regular oatmeal is superior to instant oatmeal. Since instant oatmeal is more processed and also ground, it is absorbed by the body much faster than regular oatmeal. This means that such oatmeal is more likely to increase blood sugar levels and contribute to a faster feeling of hunger. Thus, instant oatmeal has a high glycemic index, while regular oatmeal has a low glycemic index, which allows it to provide a longer feeling of satiety. Conclusion: Considering all three of the above, rolled oatmeal is definitely healthier.

Here the next question arises - which is better: rolled oatmeal or regular? Do all of the above facts make instant oatmeal unhealthy? The answer is no! Instant oatmeal is more processed and has a high glycemic index, but it has the same nutritional value as rolled oatmeal (in terms of vitamins, fiber, cholesterol-lowering ability, etc.), so it cannot be considered harmful. In fact, all varieties of oatmeal undergo some processing. Then why is there so much talk about instant oatmeal being unhealthy? In fact, unhealthy instant oatmeal is flavored oatmeal, such as apple or cinnamon, maple or brown sugar, chocolate, etc. Flavored varieties of instant oatmeal are high in sugar, salt, artificial colors, and other undesirable ingredients. This makes eating nutritious oatmeal not such a healthy way to start the day.

And while regular oatmeal is the ideal choice, if you're looking for a more convenient breakfast staple, you can be sure to choose instant oats that are healthy, full-bodied, and contain the least amount of ingredients. Adding a small amount of crushed fruits and nuts to oatmeal not only makes it taste better, it also improves its nutrient content and makes you feel fuller for a longer time.