Is granola healthy?

1. Granola is similar to muesli and cruesli (Cruesli is a brand name of Quaker, but it is popularly understood as a synonym for all crunchy muesli). There are varieties of muesli such as chocolate and dried fruit. Granola is slightly different. Granola, for example, is sweetened with honey or agave syrup. Granola can not only be found in specialty stores, but also in the supermarket. However, is all the granola available in the store healthy? Or is it better to make your own granola?

What is granola?

1. To find out whether granola really contributes so much to the physical condition of the body, it is useful to know exactly what granola is. Granola, muesli and cruesli are very close together. All of these products consist of a mixture of roasted nuts, grains and seeds. However, muesli is raw and unprocessed, granola and cruesli are roasted. The difference with cruesli is the fact that the granola is sweetened with honey or agave syrup, which gives it its own sweet taste. In addition, granola contains more seeds, such as sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds or sesame seeds and a wider variety of nuts.

Is granola healthy or unhealthy?

1. The basic ingredient of granola is oatmeal. This is a source of dietary fiber. Dietary fiber is very important for good digestion. On average men need 40 grams of dietary fiber per day and women 30 grams. In addition to dietary fiber, oatmeal is a source of iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, silicon, and vitamins E, K, B1, B2, B6 and B12. In short: oatmeal is very healthy. The second ingredient is often nuts or seeds, which are often almonds or walnuts. This ingredient also contains many vitamins, healthy fats and proteins.

Honey and agave syrup as a sweetener

1. Agave syrup ensures that the blood sugar level does not rise so quickly. But the sugar in agave syrup is fructose. Fructose places a load on the liver, which can make the liver fatty. All this increases the risk of developing diabetes. So the benefits of agave syrup are outweighed by the drawbacks.

Granola from the supermarket

1. Granola that you buy in the supermarket always looks very healthy. It is presented as a healthy alternative to the sandwich in the morning and packaging with fruit, nuts and seeds supports a super healthy image. Unfortunately, this image is often unjustified, even though the essence of the product always remains healthy: oatmeal, nuts and fruit, there is little that can go wrong here. However, the granola from the supermarket generally contains a lot of sugar. Often this is made from honey, but this honey has been heated, so you can see it as normal sugar.

Make your own granola

1. This makes it a better choice to make granola yourself. A healthy granola starts with time. Take the time to prepare your own breakfast, lunch or snack. That way you know exactly what's in it. You can determine the ingredients yourself, as long as you stick to the base of oatmeal, nuts or seeds and fruit. As a result, you can choose what you eat and vary endlessly with the nuts, seeds and fruits that taste best to you. To fully control the process, you can choose to roast the ingredients separately in a cast iron pan or wok.

2. This makes it a better choice to make granola yourself. A healthy granola starts with time. Take the time to prepare your own breakfast, lunch or snack. That way you know exactly what's in it. You can determine the ingredients yourself, as long as you stick to the base of oatmeal, nuts or seeds and fruit. As a result, you can choose what you eat and vary endlessly with the nuts, seeds and fruits that taste best to you. To keep the process under control, you can choose to roast the ingredients separately in a cast iron pan or wok.