Porridge is <i>the</i> hearty breakfast

The Scots have known it for years - but porridge really is the ultimate breakfast.

New research has found that chemicals in the oats can protect people from heart disease.

In laboratory tests they were found to significantly reduce blood cholesterol levels by "unsticking" molecules that can clog up arteries. When blood cells stick to artery walls and cause inflammation, plaque deposits build up and narrow the passageways through which blood flows. This can lead to heart failure.

But oat antioxidants, called avenanthramides, can suppress this plaque, leading to healthy arteries.

Scientists at Tufts University, Boston, exposed oat avenanthramides to human arterial wall cells for 24 hours and found the ability of blood cells to stick to them was reduced.

Meanwhile, a survey last year by Oxford Brookes University found that porridge could help tackle childhood obesity because the food releases sugar slowly, so children eating it are less tempted to snack between meals.