5 Interesting Facts About Oat Milk If You're Curious But Also Lazy
by Marissa Pomerance
We all know Oat Milk is the alt-milk of the moment, and we already wrote everything you’ll ever need to know about it, if you have an entire quarantafternoon to spare. But most of us already make approx. 35,000 decisions each day, and we just do not have the time to research every ingredient that passes our lips, or parse through 23 different articles reviewing all of the Oat Science in existence.
What we all really want to know is whether oat milk is healthy, and we want to know quickly because we have to do 8 more hours of work/homeschool our kids/cook dinner/try to squeeze in a quick workout/disinfect the house/find time to read a book/meditate/call our therapist/ attempt to also be present for our spouse? So if scrolling through quick IG captions is more of your style, we’ve condensed everything you must know about oat milk into some simple bullets for your reading pleasure.
1. There is an oat milk finder website!!!
If you are fully onboard the oat milk train and are desperately searching for a place to buy your precious Oatly, look no further than Oatfinder, which will help you track down your beloved elixir de rigueur.
2. Oat milk is healthyish.
We all just want to know if chugging down gallons of oat milk is good for us. And it turns out it’s…fine. Oat milk definitely has some dietary benefits; for example, oats are extremely high in fiber, which slows down the release of sugar into the bloodstream. Which is probably why they’ve been linked to a reduced risk of heart disease and lower cholesterol levels, making oat milk a healthy alternative for diabetics.
And often, store bought versions like Oatly fortify their products with vitamins A, B12, and D2, calcium, and riboflavin, which are important micronutrients.
But, oat milk does have slightly more carbs, fats, and calories than alternative milks like almond milk. And since carbohydrates get broken down into sugar, it’s not a completely sugar-free indulgence.
3. It probably won’t make you gain weight.
At least not in moderation. Oat milk might not help you lose weight or stave off diseases, but it’s a perfectly good alternative to milk and other non-dairy milks. Its pros and cons vary per brand and ingredients, but choosing simple formulas with the least number of additives will be your best bet for avoiding any oat milk-related weight gain.
However, it might not be your best alt-milk option if you’re actively trying to lose weight. As we previously mentioned, oat milk is not carb-free, fat-free, or zero-calorie. And even though when the sugar in unsweetened oat milk is naturally occurring, we know that too much sugar can lead to weight gain. So, if you’re really trying to cut down on carbs, you might want to stick with unsweetened almond milk.
4. Watch out for the oil.
The second ingredient in most store-bought oat milk is oil.
Unfortunately, oil is a common additive that makes oat milk so rich and frothy. However, canola oil is actually a pretty good source of vitamin E, low in saturated fat (the bad fat) and high in mono- and polyunsaturated fat (the good fats).
But rapeseed oil, which canola oil derives from, is typically high in erucic acid, which has been linked to heart problems. While canola oil is healthier, these oil names are used interchangeably, and both can be found in oat milk. So sometimes, you might be getting the healthier “canola” oil, and other times, you’ll be getting the less-healthy “rapeseed.”
Because this is so frustratingly confusing, it’s best to stick to varieties of oat milk made with just oats and water, like this one from Trader Joe’s.
5. Oat milk isn’t associated with any of the major allergens.
Obviously, oat milk is a great alternative for anyone with a lactose or dairy allergy. And it’s an especially great alt-milk for anyone with a tree nut allergy who just couldn’t hop on the almond milk bandwagon. Oat milk is generally safe for basically everyone else, too, as oat allergies are pretty rare.
Oats also don’t usually contain gluten. But since other gluten products can occasionally contaminate oats if they are processed in the same factory, if you’re gluten-sensitive, you’ll want to check that the oat milk carton is labeled as “gluten-free” or “no gluten.”
Marissa Pomerance is the Managing Editor of The Candidly. She’s a Los Angeles native and lover of all things food, style, beauty, and wellness. You can find more of her articles here.
