This Morning Habit Just May Save Your Heart

Not so fast, guys. Running out the door in the morning without eating breakfast is causing some serious damage to your health. So grab a bowl of steel cut oats and listen up.

One study out of Harvard points out that men/women who forego breakfast have a 27% higher risk of developing heart disease than those who start off the day with something in their stomachs. That’s not all – men who skip breakfast are also more prone to weight gain, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol. And, if you make it a habit of foregoing food in the morning, you’re also more likely to indulge in other unhealthy activities like smoking and drinking alcohol.

We get it; most mornings you’re rushing out the door with barely enough time to tuck in your shirt, let alone prepare a healthy meal. But you don't have to sit down to something fancy – or time consuming -- to protect your heart and get a healthy start on the day.

Check out these quick and easy breakfast ideas:

Bite into hard-boiled eggs. They’re simple to prepare (especially if you boil them the night before) and full of the wake-you-up chemical tyrosine. Starting your day with eggs can also help you burn fat and control your appetite throughout the day.

Graze on grains. Toast up one slice of whole grain bread, smear it with peanut butter and top it off with a few slices of banana. The fiber in the whole grain toast will keep you feeling full. Not to mention, four servings of whole grains a day helps keep your blood pressure in a healthy range.

Feast on fruits, nuts and carbs. On your way out the door, grab an apple or a pear, a handful of almonds and seven low-fat Triscuit crackers. This mini-meal offers an impressive 10g of protein.

No time to fix anything?

If you’re totally pressed for time and your only breakfast option involves placing an order at the drive-thru window, here are some waistline friendly fast-food options.

The benefits of breakfast are far-reaching. Not only does it help protect against heart disease, it kick-starts your metabolism, allowing your body to burn more calories throughout the day. Eating breakfast also helps regulate your cardiovascular and immune systems, improves your memory, lifts your mood and gives you a performance boost to fuel you through those first few hours at work.

Now if that doesn’t make you want to sit down and nosh a bowl of Wheaties before you head out the door, we don’t know what will. 

Mini Miracles when Applied Oatmeal Mask to skin

You probably know that oatmeal's a fiber-rich superfood that does an all-star job of sopping up cholesterol and speeding it out of the body. But do you also know that its grainy little flakes perform mini miracles when applied to skin? Oatmeal whisks away dead cells, irritation, and redness, leaving a soft, moist glow behind.

While this could be news to you, oatmeal's long been a staple among skin pros -- even ancient ones. Its skin-soothing powers were known as early as 2000 BC, and to this day, the FDA cites it as effective for relieving dryness and inflammation, including insect stings, rashes, and eczema. That's why finely powdered ("colloidal") oatmeal is sifted into soothing body soaks, moisturizers, and soaps. (Pulverizing the oats into powder makes it easier to disperse their healing goodness -- and in soaks it keeps them from collecting in the bottom of the tub.)

"There are four reasons why your skin adores oatmeal," explains New York City dermatologist Amy Wechsler, MD:

1. Dryness fighting: Oats contain polysaccharides, which become gelatinous in water and leave a fine protective film on the skin, preventing dull, flaky dryness.

2. Moisturizing: Oats are full of healthy, lubricating fats.

3. Defense building: The proteins in oatmeal help maintain the skin's natural barrier function, which ensures that the world outside the skin stays out, and what's inside the skin stays in.

4. Pore cleansing: Oats are filled with natural cleansers (called saponins) that gently remove dirt and oil from the pores.

To reap all of these benefits, Wechsler suggests treating your skin to a colloidal oatmeal mask every week or two. Here's her super simple recipe -- good bet the ingredients are already in your kitchen.

The Skin Doc's Smoothing, Soothing Oatmeal Mask

2 tablespoons old-fashioned oats

2 tablespoons hot water

1/2 tablespoon honey

1. Put the oats into a clean herb or coffee grinder on the finest setting, and process into powder.

2. Pour into a small bowl and stir in hot water and honey. Let stand for 5 minutes.

3. Wash face with warm water. While skin is still damp, massage paste onto face, circling around eyes and mouth. Leave on for 10 minutes.

4. Remove with tepid water and a washcloth. Apply your favorite moisturizer to seal the deal and set the glow.

P.S.: Don't stop eating oats just because you've transformed them into a beauty treatment! They're hard to beat as a source of health-protective soluble fiber -- and eating a high-fiber diet can make your RealAge up to 6 years younger.

Here's another beauty treatment to try, and it's made with the world's sexiest superfood.

Amazing Benefits of Oats

Cream of Wheat, or oatmeal for breakfast? If you’re looking for foods that lower blood pressure, go for the oats.

In a study of folks with high blood pressure, eating soluble-fiber-rich whole-grain oats every day caused a significant dip in BP readings. In fact, some people's pressure dropped so low from the benefits of oatmeal that they needed less blood pressure medication.

Frosting on the Oats

First things first. Never change or stop your prescription medications without express instructions from your doctor. But a bowl of oatmeal in the morning may be a wonderful thing to add to your blood pressure management plan. In the study, a diet supplemented with oats was not only more effective than wheat fiber at slashing blood pressure readings but also helped control cholesterol and blood sugar. That's quite a powerful package of heart-protective benefits for one little grain, and certainly proves as one of the best foods that lower blood pressure.

The Proof Is in the Grains

To reap the full benefits of oatmeal that the study participants got, you need only about three-fourths of a cup of whole-grain oatmeal at breakfast and an oat-based snack later in the day.