Star of healthy
brunches
, a nutritious variant of industrial cereals, oatmeal and muesli have become a sweet and healthy breakfast essential.
Plain flakes or mixed with chocolate chips, nuts or dried fruits... the choice is wide on the supermarket shelves.
And their nutritional contribution also varies depending on their composition.
So how do you find your way and choose the best product?
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Also read: Sliced bread, brioche or rusks: which one to choose for a fairly healthy breakfast?
Low in carbohydrates
“The ideal bowl is composed of pure oat or wheat flakes and a mixture of nuts,” immediately indicates Pamela Ebner, dietitian nutritionist, author of the book
Manger True
(1).
By choosing plain flakes, which already represent a source of carbohydrates, you also ensure that you consume a lower dose of sugar.
“It is important that the first meal of the day is not too rich in carbohydrates, molecules which are transformed into glucose (sugar) in the body,” indicates the specialist.
“A breakfast that is too sweet will cause a spike in blood sugar (
a sudden increase in blood sugar levels, Editor’s note
), then a drop in blood sugar, which will make you hungry and encourage sweet cravings throughout the day.”
If you want to opt for a more gourmet version, with pieces of fruit or chocolate chips for example, all you have to do is check the list of ingredients on the back of the product.
The components are listed in decreasing proportion.
“Among the first two on the list, we must find oats, wheat or nuts, but no sweet ingredients,” specifies Pamela Ebner.
Otherwise, it means that the product is composed mainly of sugar.
Rich in fiber
To be nutritious, muesli must be rich in fiber.
“Fiber helps stabilize the famous blood sugar peak,” says the dietitian nutritionist.
We therefore refer here to the ratios in the nutritional composition of the product.
“There should always be at least 1 gram of fiber for every 5 grams of sugar,” she says.
So, if a muesli contains 20 grams of sugar per serving, it must have at least 4 grams of fiber for the same serving.
The specialist also recommends adding foods that are sources of fiber to our bowl of crunchy muesli or oatmeal.
For example, you can choose from oilseeds (pumpkin, flax, chia seeds, almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts, etc.).
In addition, nuts and seeds are rich in omega 3, essential fatty acids that the body needs daily.
Also read: Pasta or rice: which is healthier?
To be complete, a breakfast must also consist of proteins.
Milk (cow's, almond or hazelnut), natural yogurt, kefir, or even almond or hazelnut puree... everyone can enhance their bowl according to their tastes.
Fructose syrup, glucose syrup, sweeteners... We avoid refined sugars in favor of honey, cane sugar, coconut blossom or coconut.
Pamela Ebner, dietitian nutritionist
Avoid ultra-processed ingredients
To ensure that we choose the healthiest product possible, we turn away from those that contain ultra-processed ingredients, that is to say designed by food manufacturers, and therefore of little nutritional value.
On the label, we spot these chemical molecules with incomprehensible names or ingredients that we would not find in our kitchen.
“Fructose syrup, glucose syrup, sweeteners... For example, we avoid refined sugars in favor of honey, cane sugar, coconut blossom or coconut,” explains the specialist.
Finally, watch out for crispy muesli containing rice or puffed quinoa.
“These ingredients come from an industrial process in which their food matrix is destroyed,” she warns.
They will quickly increase the blood sugar level in the body, they are harmful to health.
(1)
Eating Really
, by Pamela Ebner, Thierry Souccar editions, 324 pages, €22.90.