Food - Drink
Overnight Oats Vs. Cooked: Is There A Nutritional Difference?
By EMILY BOYETTE
Oats allow you to get creative with flavors, additions, and preparations, while also being incredibly nutritious and full of fiber, minerals, and antioxidants. While all oats are healthy, you may wonder if there's a nutritional difference between oats that are cooked and no-cook "overnight oats" that are soaked for hours to become tender.
When oats soak overnight, their starches are broken down, which decreases their levels of phytic acid, an acid that prevents humans from absorbing key minerals such as iron, zinc and calcium. Therefore, soaking oats allows our bodies to better absorb nutrients, and consuming low levels of phytic acid overall can prevent mineral deficiencies.
Also, oats that are cooled instead of cooked contain more resistant starch. John Hopkins Medicine explains that this starch does not readily digest in the small intestine, causing the carbs to ferment and form a natural prebiotic; for oats that are better for nutrient absorption, digestion, and lower blood sugar, overnight oats are the way to go.