Porridge is a healthy, nutritious way to start the day. However, there is much debate about which oats are the best to use and which cooking method is healthiest.

For extra flavour, add fruit such as bananas, berries, raisins, apples or dates. These help towards your 5-a-day. A pinch of cinnamon adds a sweet flavour without any sugar. You should also consider that porridge pots typically contain milk powder, which adds calories, allowing you to just add hot water for easy preparation. Syn Values Of Porridge Pots If you are looking for a porridge pot you can use as your healthy extra B, make sure they are plain oats with no added flavourings or milk, they should also be within 45g or simply add up the excess syns. Low Syn Alternatives To Porridge Pots Most porridge pots do have syns on the slimming world plan since they are often flavoured with added ingredients, syns vary between brands but you can expect the average pot to have between 7.5 and 12.5 syns, making them very high. Don’t add salt, as an excess intake can raise your blood pressure over time, and avoid adding sugar, syrup or honey. A tablespoon of syrup, for example, adds 60kcal and 16g of sugar – nearly a third of the daily maximum sugar intake for a woman. Maple syrup and honey may sound natural, but aren’t any healthier and the sugar content is very similar.As we mentioned above, porridge pots have a wide range of syns according to the brand, size and flavour, to help you compare and find some syn-friendly options we've listed a few popular values down below.

Flavoured instant porridge is instantly higher in syns, due to the added sugar and flavourings, you also have to consider whether or not your make it up with milk, you can use milk as your healthy extra A. Is microwave or instant porridge as good for me as traditional porridge? BHF dietitian Victoria Taylor says: To keep oats syn free you can also use up to 125ml of semi-skimmed milk as your healthy extra A dairy allowance or simply make your porridge with water, topping with sweetener and berries to keep the porridge syn free. For example, the Quakers oats golden syrup porridge pot has a serving size of 57g which is around 10g over the standard 45g portion, it also has up to 16g of sugar in one pot. If your instant porridge is plain with no add-ins, you can have up to 40g of it as your healthy extra B, which is your fibre allowance for the day. However, if you have already used your healthy extra B for the day, on average, instant porridge will cost you around 7.5 syns for 40g which is quite high in syns.To keep your syns low and use your porridge as your healthy extra B, we've put together a simple oats recipe for you to try out at home below. Ingredients

Symington's Ltd, Dartmouth Way, Leeds, LS11 5JL, UK. Tennant & Ruttle Distribution Ltd., 2010 Orchard Avenue, Citywest, Dublin 24, D24 EKW3, Ireland. Keep the lid on and allow the porridge to cool for a few minutes, serve with your berries and a sprinkle of your sweetener! If your looking for a syn-free porridge on the slimming world plan, no porridge is syn-free, but you can use porridge oats up to 45g as your healthy extra B which is your fibre allowance on the plan, anything over this will need to be synned.

BHF dietitian Victoria Taylor says:

There’s nothing wrong with microwaving porridge, especially if you are in a rush in the morning. Instant porridge is fine if you stay away from flavoured or sweetened versions. Even healthy-sounding flavours such as apple and blueberry generally contain added sugars. Whichever porridge you choose, make it with low-fat milk or water to keep the calories down and minimise saturated fat, especially if you are trying to lower your cholesterol levels.