Is Instant Oatmeal Acidic or Alkaline?
Instant oatmeal (cooked) is slightly acid-forming: Positive PRAL: acid-forming after digestion.
Classification
Prepared instant oatmeal comes in at +1.2. The oats bring protein and phosphorus, but all the water or milk spreads that over much more weight, so the value per 100 g is small. At 71 kcal per 100 g, the bowl is light, as long as the packet doesn't contain a lot of sugar. Top it with banana or apple pieces, and your oatmeal turns slightly alkaline.
In the Meals & Fast Food category, instant oatmeal (cooked) ranks #47 of 118, sorted from alkaline to acid-forming. More alkaline options include Rice pudding (+1.2), Vegetarian lasagna (+0.8), Onion rings (+0.7). More acid-forming are Chili con carne (+1.3), Onion tart (with bacon) (+1.5), Pizza vegetarian (+1.6).
Acidic or alkaline: PRAL, not pH
On this site, acidic and alkaline refer to the PRAL (potential renal acid load). It estimates what a food leaves behind once it has been digested: a positive value is acid-forming, a negative value is alkalizing. That is different from the pH of the food itself: a lemon tastes sour, yet its PRAL is −4.0, so it is alkalizing. Your diet does not change your blood pH. It does change how much acid your kidneys have to deal with.
What balances instant oatmeal
A meal (300 g) of instant oatmeal adds +3.7 to your daily balance. These three bring it back; the grams shown offset exactly this serving.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is instant oatmeal acidic?
It depends on what you mean by acidic. The pH describes the food itself, for example how sour it tastes. The PRAL describes what it leaves behind after digestion: Instant oatmeal (cooked) has a PRAL of +1.2 per 100 g, so it counts as slightly acid-forming in your daily acid-base balance.
How much avocado offsets a meal (300 g) of instant oatmeal?
A meal (300 g) of instant oatmeal adds +3.7 to your daily balance. Avocado (ripe) has −9.9 per 100 g, so about 40 g of avocado offset this serving.
Do I have to avoid instant oatmeal on an alkaline diet?
No. What counts is the balance of the whole day, not a single food. Instant oatmeal is slightly acid-forming; with enough vegetables, potatoes and fruit on the same plate, the meal stays balanced.
Instant Oatmeal logged, balance checked.
Basentracker adds up every meal automatically and shows whether your day is in the alkaline range. The same values as on this page, all 977 foods, photo scan, recipes.
Free for Android · iPhone coming soon
Compare all Meals & Fast Food: Meals & Fast Food table. Common questions are answered in Acidic or Alkaline?, and the PRAL calculator adds up a whole meal.
Source: Basentracker food database (PRAL according to Remer & Manz, calculated from protein, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium and calcium per 100 g). This information does not replace medical advice.