Are Instant Oats Acidic or Alkaline?
Instant oats (raw) are acid-forming: Positive PRAL: acid-forming after digestion.
Classification
At +6.8, instant oats sit exactly at the level of regular rolled oats. They are just cut finer and pre-steamed so they soak up liquid faster, and their protein and phosphorus stay fully intact. The only advantage is the shorter prep time. Add apple pieces, banana and raisins to your oatmeal, and you get much closer to zero.
In the Grains, Bread & Pasta category, instant oats (raw) rank #95 of 121, sorted from alkaline to acid-forming. More alkaline options include Buckwheat flour (+6.7), Egg noodles, fresh (+6.7), Protein bread (+6.6). More acid-forming are Wheat berries (+7.1), Spelt flour type 630 (+7.3), Wholemeal pasta (+7.3).
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 oats
A dry serving (50 g) of instant oats adds +3.4 to your daily balance. These three bring it back; the grams shown offset exactly this serving.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are instant oats 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 oats (raw) have a PRAL of +6.8 per 100 g, so they count as acid-forming in your daily acid-base balance.
How much avocado offsets a dry serving (50 g) of instant oats?
A dry serving (50 g) of instant oats adds +3.4 to your daily balance. Avocado (ripe) has −9.9 per 100 g, so about 30 g of avocado offset this serving.
Do I have to avoid instant oats on an alkaline diet?
No. What counts is the balance of the whole day, not a single food. Instant oats are acid-forming; with enough vegetables, potatoes and fruit on the same plate, the meal stays balanced.
Instant Oats 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.
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Compare all Grains, Bread & Pasta: Grains, Bread & Pasta 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.