The consumption of alternatives to cow’s milk is increasingly widespread, with plant products such as soy milk, almond milk or oat milk. We even see them in the most bars and cafes.
But although in theory they are healthy alternatives to traditional milk, they can also have their contraindications. This is the case of oat milk: many experts are taking to social media to advise against its use, after some research has suggested that It might not be as good as you thought.
Is oat milk really that bad for us? “Oat milk is composed almost exclusively carbohydrates“says nutrition specialist Sarah Carolides in a report published by the Daily Mail.
“There are between 15 and 20 grams of carbohydrates in a glass of oat milk, compared to eight grams of carbohydrates that is in a glass of cow’s milk,” says the expert.
“This means that it has lots of calories but very little proteinso it won’t satisfy you for long. And then there are the emulsifiers, which keep the oat milk from separating, the sweeteners and other additives found in commercial brands. “If you drink several oat milk coffees a day, it can become a problem,” he says.
French biochemistry Jessie Inchauspe went viral earlier this year for explaining the spike in blood sugar levels (and subsequent crash) that occurs after drinking an oat milk latte.
“This milk comes from oats. Oats are a grain and grains are starch. Therefore, when you drink oat milk, “You’re drinking starch juice.”he said in a video viewed more than five million times.
“You’re drinking juice with a lot of glucose, so it causes a big glucose spike. If you’re drinking oat milk because you think it’s healthier, just switch it up. Go back to drinking whole milk or unsweetened nut milk“he added.
Glucose spikes occur when there is more sugar in the bloodstream than cells can use for energy. These rapid increases are followed by sharp fallswhich can cause feelings of hunger. In the long term, regular glucose spikes have been linked to the development of type 2 diabetes and heart disease.
The thing is, most oat milks only contain about 10% oats. The rest is water mixed with oils and emulsifiers that keep the ingredients mixed and allow it to foam like cow’s milk when heated.
And these oils can still contribute to raising cholesterol levels when consumed in excess, says doctor Oliver Guttmannconsultant cardiologist at Wellington Hospital in London.
“Oats, for example, consumed in the form of porridge, can reduce cholesterol over time, since it has a lot of fiberand fiber lowers cholesterol,” he says. “But drinking frothy oat milk, which has a higher fat content, can cause high cholesterol if drunk in excess,” says Guttmann.
Additionally, diets high in sugar cause the liver to produce more LDL (the ‘bad’) cholesterol and can lower HDL (the ‘good’) cholesterol levels. “We have always thought that saturated fats were bad for cholesterol, but now it is increasingly recognized that sugars in the diet can also affect it,” says nutritionist Carolides. “Maybe that’s why there are anecdotal reports of people who reduce your cholesterol levels when they stop drinking oat milk,” he adds.
“A small amount of oat milk in a coffee a day won’t be a problem. But a few large servings They are basically empty calories. that keep carbohydrate and salt levels high and not much else,” adds Carolides.
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