Product Ingredients
Ingredients: Old fashioned rolled oats, almonds, pecans, walnuts, brown sugar, water, canola oil, pure Vermont maple syrup, honey, cinnamon and pure vanilla extract.
We are so happy to offer a healthy snack option that we are proud to make it's nutritional information available on every package. We encourage you to compare labels.
1. The skinny on oats
Numerous studies have proven that oats, the number one ingredient in Amy's Granola, when eaten regularly can help lower cholesterol. Time's January 21, 2002 issue published that oats "contain beta-glucan, a spongy, soluble fiber that mops up the precursors of cholesterol in the intestines and whisks them out of the body." They went on to say that, " New evidence suggests that oats may also help lower blood pressure in hypertension patients. Other benefits: the oat is one of the few grains that contain hard-to-find antioxidants, such as the vitamin E, like compounds called tocotrienols. Another plus is that the dietary fiber and protein in oats make you feel full fast. That should keep you away from more fattening foods and help control your weight."
Further, as Fitness Magazine noted in their in the May 2002 edition, oats were listed as a food that "slashes the risk of heart disease". They went on to say that," According to more than 40 studies, eating about one cup of cooked oatmeal a day significantly decreases blood cholesterol levels, thanks to beta-glucans, a soluble fiber. (Oats have the most soluble fiber of any food.) The key, however, is to maintain a consistent intake; regular consumption of oatmeal cuts your overall heart-disease risk by as much as 29 percent, according to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association."
2. Go nuts for it.
Amy's Granola with nuts contains natural almond slices, and natural pecan and walnut halves (and sometime pieces if I feel like breaking them up a little.) Essentially we chose to have nuts in Amy's Granola because we like nuts and come to find out, they are pretty good for you in moderation. There's been lots of information published about the health benefits of nuts, but I found this snippet from NBC30.com, as provided by the American Dietetic Association, to be the most succinct (and the article specifically supported the three nut composition I had chosen.) They said, "Nuts may help reduce your risk of heart disease, diabetes and some forms of cancer. In addition, they provide protein, folic acid, niacin, magnesium, selenium, zinc and other important vitamins and minerals. Nuts also contain more unsaturated fats than animal proteins. For a good "healthy" fat composition, try walnuts, almonds, peanuts and pecans."
3. The truth about canola oil
In addition, we use only pure canola oil, considered by most to be a healthy oil choice. There's a ton of information about how great canola oil is. I found a really good Canadian site "CanolaInfo" that has terrific information as well as a really cool chart comparing the various oils.
The folks at CanolaInfo claim that, "Canola oil is nutritionally significant because of its unique fatty acid profile. In fact, it has been stated that canola oil has the best fatty acid profile of any edible oil. This is attributed to its very low level of saturated fats (approximately 7%), a moderate level of polyunsaturated fats (approximately 32%), and a high level of monounsaturated fats (approximately 61%). In addition, canola oil contains a healthy balance of the essential polyunsaturated fatty acids (EFAs), linoleic and alpha-linolenic acid; both these fatty acids cannot be produced by the body and must therefore be obtained from the diet.
They go on to explain that, "The low level of saturated fat, high level of monounsaturated fat, and intermediate levels of essential fatty acids give canola oil a very attractive fatty acid profile. When used as part of a balanced diet, canola oil has been shown to lower blood cholesterol levels and have a beneficial effect on clot formation, thereby decreasing the risk of heart disease and stroke. Canola oil contains just 7% saturated fat compared to, for example, 15% for olive oil, 19% from peanut oil and 12% for sunflower oil." While it all sounds very scientific, I think that the bottom line is that, "Canola does not cause or contribute to any disease, in fact, it can improve health. The positive effects of canola's unsaturated fatty acids on certain health conditions, such as cardiovascular disease, are well documented."
I found canola oil to be the most nutritious oil for my recipe and it is used in moderation. I encourage you to compare the fat content of Amy's Granola with that of its competition.
4. How sweet it is. . .
I use Green Mountain Honey Farms' honey, Peter Purinton's pure Vermont Maple Syrup and brown sugar. You can't get any better than that. However, we are sensitive to the sugar content of this product and look forward to introducing a sugar free product in the future. In the meantime, please compare labels, as our sugar content is much lower than most.
5. No Salt
We have been trying to reduce the sodium in our diets, at least a little. Therefore, there is no salt in our granola. We don't think it needs it. The benefit is that Amy's Granola has ZERO mgs of sodium.
