# Oat Bran and Dietary Fiber **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 31, 2014, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oat-bran-and-dietary-fiber/684953 "2014-03-31T02:07:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2014, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oat-bran-and-dietary-fiber/684953/1 "2014-03-31T02:07:04Z")
I am super confused by this. I recently bought some oat bran tablets and they turn out to have very little dietary fiber in them. The tablets are 850 mg each, and they are definitely mostly bran (not just compressed oatmeal). I’d have thought I was taking at least .7 grams of fiber per pill but the label says the dietary fiber is \<1 gram for three tablets. So that’s less than .3 grams per .85 gram tablet. I just find this soooo surprising. I always thought of bran as being 95% fiber! Were my expectations off, or is something else going on here? What exactly is bran made of?!? ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2014, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oat-bran-and-dietary-fiber/684953/2 "2014-03-31T03:03:28Z")
I’m pretty confused, too. [These Oat Bran caps are 750mg, and 4 of them have 1g soluble fiber and 1g insoluble fiber.](http://www.vitaminshoppe.com/p/solgar-oat-bran-750-mg-100-tablets/sl-2060?sourceType=sc&source=FG&adGroup=40-60&keyword=SL-2060&cm_mmc=Google+Shopping-_-Product+Listing+Ads-_-40-60-_-SL-2060&gclid=CI7NtMLhu70CFYsWMgodg1MAVQ&gclsrc=aw.ds#.UzjXo6LYG3I) That leaves 1g of other stuff, like fats (which Oat Bran is rich in) and probably a little starch. I think this is your answer: [Other Ingredients: Calcium Sulfate, Cellulose (Plant Origin), Gelatin, Silica. This product contains wheat ingredients.](http://www.puritan.com/puritans-pride-brand-0102/oat-bran-850-mg-006093?scid=28818#tab-2) Being tablets instead of capsules, they’ve got other binders and fillers in them that brings down the fiber content. That 850mg weight must be the weight of the _tablet_, not the oat bran in the tablet. That’s a horribly shady way to label your product, and frankly I’m shocked to see it in a Puritan’s Pride product. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2014, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oat-bran-and-dietary-fiber/684953/3 "2014-03-31T03:33:08Z")
100 grams of raw oat bran contains [15 grams of fiber](http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/cereal-grains-and-pasta/5703/2) (15% by weight). It also contains other carbs (51% by weight), protein (15% by weight), and fat (7%). On a percent weight basis those caps are actually doing well. Still not much fiber in a few caps. What’s wrong with a cup of cooked oat bran? Or adding some chia seeds to some other food, like a yogurt? (3 Tbs have 12 grams of fiber, mostly soluble since that seems to be what you are aiming for, in 160 calories, along with other good stuff, good fats, complete protein …) Seriously. Real foods will give you much more fiber than a few tablets will. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2014, 7:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oat-bran-and-dietary-fiber/684953/4 "2014-03-31T07:07:36Z")
A doctor advised me once, on this subject: > [@A doctor](#): > > Just eat vegetables! ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2014, 9:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oat-bran-and-dietary-fiber/684953/5 "2014-03-31T09:31:30Z")
Try some porrage oats. Not the instant mush, but the almost instant real stuff like Scott’s Porage Oats. Just add milk (or milk and water) and cook in a bowl in the microwave. Hot, nourishing and full of fibre. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2014, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oat-bran-and-dietary-fiber/684953/6 "2014-03-31T12:03:56Z")
We buy oat bran for muffins, etc. a tablespoon mixed into a small Greek yogurt is great. Oat bran pancakes are fantastic. 3 Tb oat bran, 1 beaten egg, 2 Tb nofat plain Greek yogurt. Stir together, makes one large pancake. Can add sweet or savory additions. ---
**Author:** ![barbitu8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/839c29/32.png) [@barbitu8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barbitu8)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2014, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oat-bran-and-dietary-fiber/684953/7 "2014-03-31T21:08:41Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > We buy oat bran for muffins, etc. a tablespoon mixed into a small Greek yogurt is great. Oat bran pancakes are fantastic. 3 Tb oat bran, 1 beaten egg, 2 Tb nofat plain Greek yogurt. Stir together, makes one large pancake. Can add sweet or savory additions. No leavening agents other than the yogurt? I think it would be better if you add baking soda and baking powder. It would be puffier anyway. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2014, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oat-bran-and-dietary-fiber/684953/8 "2014-03-31T21:22:26Z")
> [@barbitu8](#): > > No leavening agents other than the yogurt? I think it would be better if you add baking soda and baking powder. It would be puffier anyway. Nope. The brans swells a bit as it cooks. It fills a small omelet pan nicely. I found the recipe as part of the Dukan Diet, a protein sparing fast. The bran is used as a fiber source. They are worth trying!