Skip to content
Next Episodes
Mon: 7:30pm
Tues: 7:30pm
Classic Episodes
Mon: 1:30pm
Tues: 1:30pm
Eating oats could have same effect as weight loss drugs like Ozempic, new study finds Credits: Social Media
By Ellissa Bain

Eating oats could have same effect as weight loss drugs like Ozempic, new study finds

By Ellissa Bain

A new study in mice has found that eating oats could have the same effect as using popular weight loss drugs such as Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro.

This isn’t the first time the breakfast food has been linked to weight loss. A trend took over the internet earlier this year called ‘Oatzempic’ which saw people eating a concoction of oats, water and lime juice to lose weight. Now, this is further proof that it’s not just a fad.

Woman pouring oats into bowl in kitchen, close up.
Close up of a woman preparing a wholesome breakfast by pouring oats into a bowl from a plastic free jar with fresh berries. Credit: Dougal Waters (Getty Images)

Study finds eating oats helps weight loss

The study was led by Frank Duca, associate professor in the University of Arizona’s Department of Animal and Comparative Biomedical Sciences, and published in the Journal of Nutrition in July 2024.

Researchers did multiple tests on rodents and found that eating foods rich in beta-glucan, a type of fiber found in oats and barley, can reduce obesity.

Researchers analyzed the impact of five different types of fiber (pectin, beta-glucan, wheat dextrin, starch and cellulose) on the gut microbiota, the digestive tract full of microbes that are responsible for breaking down the food we eat.

Only one of the fibers, beta-glucan, caused a reduction of body weight and fat, as well as improvements in glucose homeostasis, a process that stabilizes our blood glucose levels.

“We know that fiber is important and beneficial; the problem is that there are so many different types of fiber,” Duca said. “We wanted to know what kind of fiber would be most beneficial for weight loss and improvements in glucose homeostasis.”

Injections for weight loss with Semaglutide. An obese woman gives a hormonal injection into the abdomen with a pen syringe.
Injections for weight loss with Semaglutide. An obese woman gives a hormone glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) injection into the abdomen with a pen syringe. Credit: Iuliia Burmistrova (Getty Images)

This weight loss in mice appeared to be caused by the butyrate molecules which were produced when the bacteria naturally found in the gut interacted with the fiber.

Butyrate causes the release of gut peptides like GLP-1, which is the active ingredient inside all the popular weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. So, the fiber found in oats mimicked the same effects as these injections.

GLP-1 is a hormone that is naturally released in the gastrointestinal tract after eating, Harvard Health explains.

Inside the body, GLP-1 triggers the release of insulin from your pancreas, which helps move glucose out of the bloodstream and into your cells, where it can be used for energy. Ozempic and similar drugs, which were originally designed for diabetes, stimulate the body to release more insulin.

GLP-1 also tells your brain that you are full and slows down gastric emptying, which is the time is takes for food to move through your body. This helps you feel fuller for longer, which aids weight loss by making you eat less.

Foods that contain beta-glucan

Foods that contain this fiber, meta-glucan include:

  • Oats
  • Barley
  • Rye
  • Wheat
  • Maize
  • Mushrooms
  • Sorghum

However, oats and barley have the highest levels, so would assumedly have the best weight loss effects. Eating these foods won’t give you any of the negative side effects of Ozempic either.