Oats are part of a cereal grain. Once grown in the fields, they have to go through the process of being cleaned, and then roasted before packaging. The roasting process is what makes oats have their flavor.

The strongest mineral in oats is manganese. A one cup serving of cooked oats will provide you with 68 percent of your required allowance needed. Manganese is needed in the body to process all of your essential nutrients like biotin, and also thiamin. Biotin is what helps the body process fatty acids, and also blood sugar, (glucose).

The next best micronutrient contained in oats is selenium. Oats provide a little over 25 percent of your daily requirement for selenium. Selenium is responsible for activating antioxidants in your body to work for you, fighting against viruses and other illness.

Next on the list is tryptophan. Oats provide us with at least 24 percent of our daily tryptophan needs. Tryptophan helps our amino acids to work for us, as well as giving our bodies the right balances of nitrogen. Nitrogen is part of our chain of amino acids, which we need to have daily.

Phosphorus is needed for bones since it transports calcium and vitamin K where needed. With a cup of oats daily, we receive about 18 percent of our daily requirement.

Oats will give us vitamin B1, which is Thiamin. Thiamin is a vitamin which is water soluble, breaking blood glucose down into energy. Thiamin helps us to process various enzymes that are responsible for brain function. We will get about 18 percent of thiamin daily from oats.

Fiber is another daily mineral which we need for gastrointestinal health and roughage. One cup of oatmeal,will give us four grams of fiber which is a great start for the day. This is about 15 percent of what we need daily.

Oats contain some magnesium. A one cup serving will give you 15 percent of your daily allowance. Magnesium plays a big role in the health of bones as well as your blood sugar, blood pressure, and metabolic functions. Magnesium also has compounds that will help to prevent heart disease and lower your cholesterol.

Last of all, oatmeal is a source of protein.You get about 11 percent of protein from this food, so vegans take note. You can fulfill part of your daily protein needs this way. Proteins are what makes up our amino acids.

There are many healthy ways to enjoy oatmeal. A couple of ways are to add cut up fruits such as bananas or apples, or just plain cinnamon and Nutra-Sweet. No breakfast food is better, more fulfilling, and nutritious than oats!