The Best Oatmeal for Type 2 Diabetes
Updated on July 23, 2025
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Oatmeal, that hearty, humble breakfast staple, can be a great addition to a diabetes-friendly diet. A widely available whole grain, oats are rich in fiber and essential minerals like magnesium, phosphorus, zinc, and iron. Not only are oats nutritious and satiating, but they can also offer specific benefits for people with type 2 diabetes.
Adults with type 2 diabetes may benefit from eating whole grains like oats due to their potential glucose- and cholesterol-lowering effects. The soluble fiber in oats may help you hit your blood sugar goals and keep your weight in check.
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7 Scientific Health Benefits of Oatmeal
Oatmeal is a classic for a reason. Its versatile nature and health benefits never go out of style.
How Eating Oatmeal May Benefit People With Type 2 Diabetes
Balancing your carbohydrate intake is key to a healthy diabetes diet. Although oatmeal is high in carbohydrates, it’s not highly processed, so it’s digested and metabolized more slowly, resulting in a lower rise in blood sugar. For this reason, it sits lower on the glycemic index (GI), which ranges from 0 to 100, with 100 being pure glucose.
Blood Sugar and Weight Management
“One cup of [cooked] oatmeal has about 30 grams (g) carbs in it, with 4 g of fiber,” says Leah Kaufman, RDN, CDCES, who’s based in New York City. Fiber is important for all adults, but especially for people with diabetes. Not only does fiber help with regularity, but beta-glucan (ß-glucan), a specific type of soluble fiber found in oats, increases digestion time, helping slow down the release of glucose in the small intestine. In fact, ß-glucan can help improve blood glucose levels (both immediately after meals and during fasting) in middle-aged adults with type 2 diabetes.
It’s recommended that adult men aim to consume 28 to 34 g of fiber per day, depending on their age, while women should consume 22 to 28 g. However, more than 90 percent of women and 97 percent of men don’t meet these goals.
Even higher amounts of dietary fiber may be helpful for people with type 2 diabetes, reducing the risk of complications associated with diabetes and improving overall quality of life. Consider aiming for at least 10 g of fiber per meal from foods like oatmeal, whole grains, fruit, vegetables, and legumes. And if your fiber intake is currently low, make sure you drink plenty of water to avoid constipation, and give your digestive system time to get used to a higher fiber intake by gradually increasing the amount you consume.
Another potential benefit of high-fiber foods like oats is their ability to help keep you feeling full longer, making it less likely that you’ll overeat, thereby supporting weight loss efforts. High-fiber foods also tend to be lower in calories, helping create a daily calorie deficit that may help you lose or maintain your weight.
Lower Risk for Heart Disease and High Cholesterol
Heart disease is a known complication of type 2 diabetes because high blood glucose levels can damage nerves and blood vessels connected to your heart. While oatmeal alone won’t prevent your risk of heart disease, eating fiber-rich, anti-inflammatory foods like oats and adopting other healthy habits can contribute to lowering your chances of heart problems over the long term.
There’s also evidence that eating oats can help reduce total cholesterol and high LDL (or “bad”) cholesterol, another risk factor for heart disease. This effect may be particularly helpful for people with type 2 diabetes, who are at an increased risk of high LDL cholesterol and low HDL (“good”) cholesterol.
Which Oats Are Best for People With Type 2 Diabetes?
When it comes to your type 2 diabetes diet, not all oats are created equal. All oatmeal originates from oat groats, which are the whole kernels harvested before being stripped of their hulls. Oat groats are processed further into different types of oats that can be used for oatmeal. The more processed the oats, the less beneficial fiber they contain.
Oatmeal can come in the form of:
- Slow-Cooked (Rolled) Oats Oat groats are steamed and flattened to create flakes.
- Quick (Instant or Microwavable) Oats Oat groats are steamed for an even longer period of time so that they cook quickly in water. They’re also rolled into thinner pieces to cook more quickly, which increases their GI.
- Steel-Cut (Irish) Oats More finely cut and denser than rolled oats, steel-cut oats take longer to cook.
- Porridge Oat groats are steamed and ground into a meal-like texture.
Steel-cut oats are best for type 2 diabetes because they’re the least processed version of oat groats. “Rolled oats have a higher GI than steel-cut oats, as they actually have been partially cooked, making them increase your blood sugar faster,” says Kaufman.
Rolled oats are still better than instant versions. Oatmeal from rolled oats has a GI score of 60 per serving, while instant oatmeal has a score of 74.
Where a food falls on the GI suggests the effect that food may have on blood sugar levels, but the GI doesn’t take all aspects of the food (including portion size) into account. Glycemic load (GL), on the other hand, offers a more complete picture of how a food eaten in a specific portion is likely to affect blood sugar levels. In a sense, compared with GI, GL is a more precise way to determine whether certain foods consumed in moderation may impact blood sugar.
Rolled oats have a low GL of 9, while instant oats have a high GL of over 41. Keep in mind, though, that your individual response to foods can vary.
Topping Dos and Don’ts for a Diabetes-Friendly Bowl of Oatmeal
If you want a sweet bowl of oatmeal and some toppings, opt for fresh fruit over dried fruit. The latter has a much higher GI, and the portion sizes tend to be smaller and less filling. To keep your blood sugar in check, stick to either a ½ cup of fresh fruit or 2 tablespoons (tbsp) of dried fruit that doesn’t contain added sugars.
Almonds and walnuts are also good choices for those with type 2 diabetes, adding fiber, protein, and healthy fats to your oatmeal. But keep your portions small because nuts are also high in calories and fat. One serving is equivalent to 1 ounce (oz), which fits in the palm of your hand.
“I usually love to add raspberries or blueberries into my oatmeal in order to add even more fiber than just the oats themselves,” says Kaufman.
Ground flaxseed is another nutritious way to top off any bowl of oatmeal with additional fiber and heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids.
“When deciding on oatmeal, you want to stay away from any [options] with added sweeteners,” says Kaufman. Quick oats are often laden with added sweeteners to create flavors like maple and brown sugar or peach, all of which you should avoid if you have type 2 diabetes. If you must use sweeteners other than fruit, the American Diabetes Association suggests the following:
- acesulfame K (Sunett, Sweet One)
- aspartame (Equal, Nutrasweet)
- monk fruit
- saccharin (Sweet’N Low)
- stevia (Truvia)
- sucralose (Splenda)
When it comes to oatmeal, cooking methods matter, too. As a rule of thumb, Kaufman says, “The longer it takes to cook your oats, the better they are for you.” Properly prepared oats may take a little more time, but the potential benefits for type 2 diabetes are worth it.
The Takeaway
- Oats can be a healthy food choice for people with type 2 diabetes, supporting blood glucose management, healthy cholesterol levels, a healthy weight, and more.
- If you have type 2 diabetes, opt for oats that have been through the least amount of processing, such as steel-cut oats, to reap the biggest blood sugar–control benefits.
- When dressing up a bowl of oatmeal, stick to fresh fruits and carefully portioned nuts and seeds to add fiber, healthy fats, and additional micronutrients to your meal without risking a blood sugar spike.
- When in doubt, remember that the longer it takes to cook your oats and the less sugar you add, the better they are for you.
Resources We Trust
- Mayo Clinic: Three Diet Changes to Help Lose Weight and Better Manage Your Type 2 Diabetes
- American Diabetes Association: Tips for Eating Well
- Cleveland Clinic: Have Type 2 Diabetes? Reach for These Healthy Snacks
- Harvard Health Publishing: Healthy Eating for Blood Sugar Control
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Diabetes Meal Planning
EDITORIAL SOURCES
Everyday Health follows strict sourcing guidelines to ensure the accuracy of its content, outlined in our editorial policy. We use only trustworthy sources, including peer-reviewed studies, board-certified medical experts, patients with lived experience, and information from top institutions.
Resources
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- Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020–2025. U.S. Department of Agriculture. December 2020.
- Nitzke D et al. Increasing Dietary Fiber Intake for Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Management: A Systematic Review. World Journal of Diabetes. May 15, 2024.
- Why Is Fiber So Important? Cleveland Clinic. May 1, 2025.
- Fiber: The Carb That Helps You Manage Diabetes. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. May 15, 2024.
- Diabetes, Heart Disease, and Stroke. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. April 2021.
- Amerizadeh A et al. Effect of Oat (Avena Sativa L.) Consumption on Lipid Profile With Focus on Triglycerides and High-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol (HDL-C): An Updated Systematic Review. Current Problems in Cardiology. July 2023.
- Cholesterol and Diabetes. American Diabetes Association. April 2, 2024.
- Oatmeal (Cooked on the Water). Glycemic Index Guide.
- Instant Oats Porridge. Glycemic Index Guide.
- Higdon J et al. Glycemic Index and Glycemic Load. Oregon State University. March 2016.
- Fruit. American Diabetes Association.
- Dried Fruits. Glycemic Index Guide.
- 9 Best Nuts for People With Diabetes. Cleveland Clinic. October 16, 2024.
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Meet Our Experts
Lynn Grieger, RDN, CDCES
Medical Reviewer
Lynn Grieger is a registered dietitian-nutritionist, certified diabetes care and education specialist, certified personal trainer, and certified health and wellness coach. She comp...
Kristeen Cherney, PhD
Author
Kristeen Cherney, PhD, is a freelance writer, essayist, author, and poet with more than 15 years of health writing experience for digital platforms such as Healthline, The Mighty, ...