The Battle Of The Instant Oatmeals: McCann's VS Nature's Path

What issue could be so important as to have me post on this blog after 3 years???

INSTANT OATMEAL!

Yes, I know making oats from scratch is the most ideal way to go. But given my busy schedule, I more often than not have time for instant oatmeal, or nothing (or spending $5-8 at the deli for something breakfast-like).

Many moons ago I posted a comparison of Quaker's Organic Instant Oatmeal with Nature Path's Organic Instant Hot Oatmeal. The two were kind of at a "draw"—with Quaker's (a big corporate brand) surprisingly healthy in comparison to Nature's Path (a "health food" brand).

This time, I'm going to look at McCann's Instant Irish Oatmeal and how it rates next to Nature's Path. The flavor-of-choice I'm using is my favorite: "Maple"—"Maple Nut" in Nature's Path's case and "Maple & Brown Sugar" for McCann's.

Hands-down, I preferred Nature's Path. The first reason being, there was just more oats per container—50 grams for NP instead of 43 for McCann's—and the oats that were included seemed to be "cut" larger. There were even little crunchy bits of nuts in NP's, though to be fair McCann's is not a "nut" Maple flavor.

The amount of oats is important in the area of the instants, because frankly one packet never seems like enough to satisfy my hunger. Instant oatmeal single-servings are like the microwave dinners of breakfast...you almost have to sneak two in to feel like you've had a full meal.

The second reason I preferred Nature's Path—it tasted less sugary. NP's had 11 grams of sugar listed to McCann's 13—but keep in mind that the latter's serving size is smaller.

This takes us to the ingredients list between the two. Long story short, McCann's lists "sugar" as an ingredient 3 times—as "sugar" (2nd biggest ingredient), and then as "maple sugar" and "brown sugar." That's a lot of sugar. That's pretty much the pitfall with instant oats in general...taking in way too much sugar. You eat the oats in general (instead of Captain Crunch or a danish) because it seems like a healthy breakfast choice...but then think of how much sugar you're taking in every day because of it.

It's tough, because...instant oats on their own can really taste like little bits of cardboard boiled in water. To fully enjoy such austerity, just buy store-brand instant oats in "regular."

Also, to point out—McCann's instant oats seem to be more than double the sodium of Nature's Path. So you need to ask yourself—how much sodium do you want to start your day with?

In the end, I'm sticking to Nature's Path—with one caveat. Let me explain.

Remember that part where I said that typically, one portion of instant isn't really enough? I usually eat my instants in sets of two. Yep, I just pull two packets right out of the box and just rip those babies open at the same time. Which means that I'm eating a grand total of 410 CALORIES of instant oats every morning...oy.

What am I doing?

Folks, instant oats are just not a good breakfast choice unless you eat only one package; the amount of calories and sugar are going to really sneak up on you. Since Nature's Path has more oats per package, and they are cut bigger, this would be the better brand to use. But I'd still fry up some egg whites on the side or eat a yogurt or something to make it a full meal.