Benefits of Avena Sativa (oats)

Oats good for our body?

    Oats that known scientifically as Avena sativa are a type of whole-grain food that came from the Poaceae grass, a family of plant. This type of grain food is available in a variety of forms depending on how they are processed. Oats are rich source of protein, minerals, fats, beta-glucan, polysaccharides and dietary fiber (Christiansen and Fogoros, 2019). Hence, oats have become a very popular healthy food nowadays. As everyone knows, healthy food has important roles in human health to lead a better performance for their bodies. It is crucial to take food that full of nutrients to reduce the chances of diseases. The purpose of this essay is to inform readers about the potential of health benefits that contain in oats. It is important for the readers to know the benefits of oats because despite of the having rich nutrient contents, it is also available in any marketplace and the price is very affordable. Therefore, Avena sativa have wide range of health benefits that help in reducing the risk of chronic diseases, weight controller and ingredient in the skincare products.

One of the health benefits of Avena sativa is reducing the risk of chronic diseases. American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine state that eating foods that rich in whole-oat sources of soluble fiber such as oats, oat bran and oat flour may help reduce the risk of coronary heart disease (Nordqvist, 2018). Coronary heart disease (CHD) develop when cholesterol start to build up at the arteries wall and form plaques that make the arteries become narrow and reduce the blood flow in our body. The function of blood is to transport oxygen to the heart, yet the heart may not receive sufficient oxygen if the cholesterol level in our body is high. According to World Health Organization, around 17.9 million lives died each year because of the cardiovascular diseases and make these diseases as the number one cause of death globally. The increasing intake of whole grain such as oats can reduce the risk of CHD since the oats contain beta-glucan as their main fiber that act as the cholesterol lowering agent. Besides, higher intake of fiber in our dietary can prevent development of colorectal cancer. The study found that for every additional 10 grams per day of fiber in someone’s diet, there is a 10 percent reduction in their risk of developing colorectal cancer (Nordqvist, 2018). Oats are able to fight cancer as mentioned by Flaherty (2012), avenanthramides that only found in oats not only function as anti-inflammatory but also inhibit the growth of cancer cells. Next, normal blood pressure is crucial to life, yet blood pressure can be very high and also too low. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (as cited in Nordqvist,2018) conclude that oats are effective as taking anti-hypertensive medication in lowering the blood pressure. This is due to the beta-glucan in oats that displays beneficial effects on carbohydrate metabolism and blood pressure levels in obese individuals.

Losing weight can be frustrating. Despite of starving yourself, Avena sativa may help as a weight controller. Oats that full of fiber such as beta-glucan can make someone feel fullness for a longer period and squash hunger by reducing the craving of carbs. Thereby, oatmeal can replace foods in our daily diet and stay full more longer than usual. Furthermore, regular consumption of whole-grain foods may be correlated with lower body mass index (BMI). As mentioned by Chang (2013), body weight, BMI and body fat can be reduced by the consumption of oats. Having a diet that rich in whole grain like oats can help regulate body weight and the high consumption of this kind of healthy food will inversely associated with the risks of weight gain and incident overweight or obesity. Moreover, water from the oats also can be used as aid to the weight loss. Blend one cup of oats, a couple of cinnamon sticks and two liter of waters together (Tadimalla, 2019) and consume this for entire month that accompanied by a proper diet and exercise, a good result can be obtained. It also can consume on an empty stomach because it increases satiety and energy intake to our body.

Lastly, oats are not only meant to be eaten to give us a healthy start, yet they spark joy for our skin too. Oats are one of the most well-researched, natural ingredient in skincare. This type of natural ingredient aid in acne treatment. This is because oatmeal can soak up the excess oil on our skin and it also work as a scrub by removing the dead skin cells and polishes our skin. As the result, it can reduce spots as well as softens the skin. However, Tadimalla (2012) state that oats also can make the acne worse, so as a precaution, consult dermatologists before applying oats. As the oats exhibit anti-inflammatory and antioxidant, it can treat dryness and irritated skin. Due to this, oats are universal because it contains remarkable skin-calming and skin-soothing properties for all type of skin conditions and concerns (Kallie, 2020). In addition, oats also can act as natural moisturizer as the beta-glucan forms a fine film on our skin and penetrates deep into our skin. Oats can remove the dirt and oil from pores that make them as a natural cleanser as well. This is due to the compound called saponins and it will not cause any irritation.

In conclusion, oats or scientifically known as Avena sativa have a wide range of potential health benefits that help in reducing the risk of chronic diseases, weight controller and natural ingredient in the skincare products. Oats are an incredibly nutritious food packed with important vitamins, minerals and antioxidants especially beta-glucan that give universal benefits to those who consume them. In addition, they're high in fiber and protein compared to other grains that give long list of benefits.