Will oats help reduce your weight?

I have been eating oatmeal for breakfast almost every day, having started this habit around two months ago because of all the recommendations of its use for weight loss benefits. I'm not truly certain whether or not it is helping me to lose weight.

The main benefit of oatmeal is that it gives the user a feeling of fullness. This is true because I've experienced it first hand. In the past, I would typically be hungry by 10:00 a.m. and I would have to stop at the local deli or café for a bag of plantain chips or meat pies. Now I can usually go until lunchtime without feeling as though I am going to pass out. In a way, this helps because it prevents you from feeling hungry enough to make unnecessary trips to the vending machine.

But I really can't say that I've lost a great amount of weight over this period of time. I may have lost one or two kilos. It could be due to my increase in walking or possibly due to how many times I've eaten oatmeal in the last two months. I haven't really figured out which is causing the slight weight loss.

My sister swears by her use of oatmeal. I'm sure this means a lot to her, she believes she lost approximately 5kg last year because she made it a point to eat oatmeal on a regular basis. I tried to replicate her routine exactly. She boils her oats in water and then adds a little milk and honey. Some days I enjoy eating it, and some other days I feel like I'm forcing myself to eat it, because I had to soak the oats the night before, and I don't like the idea of wasting food.

I think the truth of the matter is that simply eating oatmeal won't cause a person to lose weight. You have to look at what you've eliminated from your diet when you start to eat oatmeal. For example, if you continually drink three bottles of beer daily, along with your oatmeal, you will likely not see any real change in your weight.

For now, I will continue to eat oatmeal, not because I believe it'll do the trick but simply because it is cost effective for a regular meal.