Is Porridge good for me?

This is a very common question I get asked at least a few times per week so here is my response….It depends! It depends on a number of things but mainly what way you cook your porridge, what you add or don’t add to your porridge, what else you eat on a daily basis and the overall balance of your diet.

Porridge as in rolled oats are high in fibre, a good source of protein and contains minerals like magnesium, iron and potassium.

The main problem with porridge is that when people eat it for breakfast, usually that’s all they eat, 5-7 days per week for months on end, where is the variety in that? So anything you eat every day is not good from a nutritional point of view as where else can you get your other nutrients from? So variety in your diet even for breakfast is always good!

Microwaveable porridge is the latest convenience form of porridge to hit the shelves, the intense heat of the microwave destroys pretty much any goodness in your porridge, so you just end up with a gooey sticky, mucus forming hot starch in your gut. Yes, you may have eaten something for breakfast, you may feel full and warm but how much nutrients did you get into you to fuel your body for the rest of the day. Every now and again I love nothing more than a bowl of porridge, however I make it the old fashioned way on the hob with a little Himalayan salt added, I cook it in water and then add some almond or coconut milk to it along with some ground up nuts and seeds and that way you have a more nutritious meal.

Cooking porridge in cow’s milk can lead onto extra acidity in the gut, this is another reason why porridge is not good for you everyday. the more starch and acid forming foods you consume the more damp your body can become, in turn this can lead onto gastrointestinal distress, muscle stiffness, inflammation, pain, soreness and tiredness in the body just to name a few. On top of this many laden their porridge with sugar or honey. It is all of this combination together on a daily basis which is not good for you. Think about simply adding more variety to your diet so you can get in more goodness sin to your body. Your body is entirely dependent upon you to feed it as much nutrition as possible so it in turn can give you abundant health and energy.

Alternatives: cooked millet, sprouted buckwheat or buckwheat flakes ( these are gluten free) fresh homemade fruit and or vegetable juices, cooked quinoa, a bowl of fresh fruit with natural yoghurt, eggs in various formats… see what you can change this week! Enjoy 🙂