IO Genix Oat Flour - Complex Carbohydrates for Sport

What is IO Genix Oat Flour?

IO Genix Farine d'Avoine is a powder made from micronised oat flakes — that is, ground extremely finely so that they dissolve in a liquid without cooking. Per 100 g, it provides 376 kcal, 61 g of carbohydrate of which only 1.3 g is sugars, 13 g of protein and 9.7 g of fibre. The flavours on offer run from chocolate brownie to pistachio, alongside an unflavoured version.

It is a food, not a supplement built around an isolated active: what you are buying is oats, put into a format you can drink from a shaker. Its appeal lies entirely in convenience. Where a porridge calls for a pan and ten minutes, one scoop in 250 ml of milk delivers the same intake in thirty seconds.

Oats are the most interesting cereal for a sportsperson's breakfast for one simple reason: they combine slow-digesting carbohydrate, a protein share that is unusual for a cereal, and a high fibre content. The rest of the Spanish range is in our IO Genix aisle, and the other products in the category in our oat flour aisle.

What does a serving of Oat Flour contain?

Two lines in this table deserve to be read together: 61 g of carbohydrate and 1.3 g of sugars. It is that ratio which sets an oat flour apart from an off-the-shelf chocolate powder, where the proportions are often reversed. With 1.3 g of sugars per 100 g, this product meets the European criterion for the low in sugars claim. The brownie or pistachio taste therefore comes from the flavourings and sweeteners, not from added sugar.

The fibre content is the other strong figure. At 9.7 g per 100 g, the product clears the threshold that allows it to be described as high in fibre under European regulations. A 30 g serving provides 2.9 g of it, which is far from trivial given that average intake in France remains below the recommendations.

The 13 g of protein per 100 g is also worth flagging: it is markedly more than rice or wheat flour. A 30 g serving provides 3.9 g, which does not make this powder a protein source, but which usefully adds to the shake if you mix it with a protein.

A point of honesty about what we cannot write. Oats contain beta-glucans, a soluble fibre that benefits from authorised claims in Europe. But those claims require a minimum quantity of beta-glucans per portion, and the manufacturer does not publish the beta-glucan content of this powder. We therefore cannot repeat them, and we are not going to invent them.

Ingredients list

Unflavoured: micronised oat flakes.

Flavoured versions: micronised oat flakes, natural flavourings, sweeteners (sucralose, acesulfame potassium, steviol glycosides).

Chocolate versions: micronised oat flakes, cocoa powder, flavourings, sweeteners (sucralose, acesulfame potassium, steviol glycosides).

May contain GLUTEN through cross-contamination. May contain traces of EGGS, MILK, NUTS and SOYA.

How do you use Oat Flour?

Serving: 30 g, or one scoop; 40 to 50 g when bulking. Liquid: 200 to 300 ml of water, milk or plant-based drink. Timing: at breakfast, one to two hours before training, or as a snack. Frequency: one to three servings a day depending on your goal. Duration: it is a food, there is no course to follow.

Shake it vigorously, and preferably in a shaker rather than stirring with a spoon. Micronisation makes things much easier, but a flour is still a flour: pour the liquid in first, the powder second, and shake immediately. That is the only way to avoid lumps.

The choice of liquid completely changes the result. With water, you stay at 113 kcal for a fluid texture. With milk, count on around a hundred extra calories, more protein and a distinctly creamier consistency — that is what we recommend for a proper breakfast. With a plant-based drink, the result sits somewhere in between.

It lends itself very well to cooking, unlike many powders in this aisle: pancakes, crêpes, muffins, overnight cold porridge. It can replace part of the ordinary flour in a recipe, bearing in mind that it does not rise like wheat flour and gives denser results. Ready-made protein pancakes remain simpler if you have no time to weigh things out.

For pre-training use, allow one to two hours before the session: this is slow-digesting carbohydrate, and 2.9 g of fibre per serving is not something to take just before going for a run. If you are after carbohydrate to take during exercise, maltodextrin is where to turn, not here.

Who is Oat Flour for, and who is it not for?

It suits anyone who cannot face a solid breakfast in the morning, anyone short of time, anyone looking for quality carbohydrate while bulking, and anyone wanting to break out of the bread-and-sugary-cereal routine. It is probably the best value-for-interest product in the whole range.

It is not suitable for people who are gluten intolerant or coeliac. Oats do not contain gluten naturally, but the manufacturer explicitly flags a possible presence of gluten through cross-contamination: this product is not certified gluten-free, and that distinction is decisive in this particular case. It may also contain traces of eggs, milk, nuts and soya.

The manufacturer carries the usual food supplement wording on its label: product not recommended for pregnant and breastfeeding women, children or people on medical treatment, with medical advice recommended before use. We reproduce it as it stands, without interpreting it, while pointing out that what we have here is micronised oat flakes — in other words, a cereal.

The 2.9 g of fibre per serving is an asset but can trouble a sensitive gut if you go from none to three servings overnight. Build up gradually.

What not to expect from it: it is not a protein, and 3.9 g per serving replaces no shake. Nor is it a slimming product — 113 kcal a serving are calories like any others, simply good-quality ones. And if your goal is mass gain, this powder contributes to it but does not replace a complete gainer.

Oat flour or cream of rice — which to choose?

Both occupy the same place in an eating plan and are separated by three specific criteria.

Cream of rice is more digestible, almost fibre-free, and better suited to just before or just after training, when a light stomach is preferable. It is also naturally gluten-free, which settles the question once and for all for anyone intolerant. Its texture is smoother and more neutral.

Oat flour provides more fibre, slightly more protein, and slower digestion. It is the better choice for breakfast and for snacks that have to last several hours. On the other hand it has a coarser texture, which not everyone enjoys.

The third criterion is taste, and it often settles matters: the choice of flavours here is wider than it generally is in cream of rice. On a product eaten every morning, palate fatigue is a real issue. A spoonful of peanut butter in the bowl solves the problem for both, as it happens.

Frequently asked questions

How many calories are in a serving?

113 kcal per 30 g made up with water, with 18.3 g of carbohydrate, 3.9 g of protein and 2.9 g of fibre. With semi-skimmed milk, count on around a hundred extra calories and a markedly higher protein intake.

Does it contain gluten?

Oats do not contain it naturally, but the manufacturer flags a possible presence of gluten through cross-contamination. This product is therefore not suitable for coeliacs or for strictly intolerant people. If you need a guaranteed gluten-free option, cream of rice is the right choice.

Is there any added sugar?

No. The table shows 1.3 g of sugars per 100 g, which corresponds to the sugars naturally present in oats. The taste of the flavoured versions comes from the flavourings and from three sweeteners: sucralose, acesulfame potassium and steviol glycosides.

Can you bake with it?

Yes, and it is in fact one of its best uses: pancakes, crêpes, muffins. Bear in mind that it does not rise like wheat flour and gives denser results. Replacing half the flour in a recipe is a good starting point.

Which flavours are available?

The range includes an unflavoured version, flavoured versions and chocolate versions. The list that is actually available is the set of variants offered on this page: that is what counts, since deliveries do not always cover the whole range.

Can you mix it with a protein?

Yes, and that is the most common use: 30 g of oat flour with 25 g of protein makes a complete breakfast in a single shaker. The mix is thicker, so add 50 ml more liquid than usual.

How much when bulking?

The manufacturer suggests 50 g per serving and two to three servings a day in that case, against 30 g in the morning and before the session for maintenance. Build up gradually: jumping straight to an extra 9 g of fibre a day makes itself felt on your digestion.

Where to buy IO Genix Farine d'Avoine?

The various flavours can be ordered from this page, and we ship throughout France and Europe. At the Vendargues shop, about ten minutes from Montpellier, it is the first product we suggest to anyone who tells us they cannot swallow a thing before eleven in the morning: drinking your breakfast still works better than skipping the meal while promising yourself you will do better tomorrow. The rest of the aisle can be browsed in our sports nutrition section.