Pap is good for weight loss in Nigeria, depending on how you eat it. Avoid eating large amounts at once and don’t add much milk or sugar.
Pap is one of those foods that almost every Nigerian grew up with, and you may call it akamu, ogi, or koko. Either way, you’ve had it before. It’s usually served warm in a bowl, with milk and sugar, and sometimes with moi moi or akara.
Tasty, right? It sure is, but now that you’re trying to lose weight, you’re wondering whether pap is good for weight loss. We’ve looked into this properly, and the answer isn’t a simple yes or no. It depends on how you eat your pap.
What Is Pap Exactly?
Pap is a meal made from fermented grains, usually corn (maize) or millet. The grains are soaked in water for about three days, then ground and sieved until you get a smooth paste. That paste is cooked with hot water until it becomes the thick, creamy stuff you know.
In Nigeria, we can count three main types of paps, including:
- White pap made from white corn
- Yellow pap made from yellow corn
- Brown pap made from millet and sorghum mixed together (also called ogi baba)
Brown pap has slightly more nutrients than white pap, but all three are similar when it comes to weight loss.
Pap Calories: What Are You Actually Eating?
One serving of plain pap (just pap and water with nothing else added) contains about 100 to 152 calories. That’s pretty low. For comparison, one plate of white rice can contain 300 to 500 calories, depending on how much you serve yourself.
So, pap on its own doesn’t have high calories. That’s why people say it can help with weight loss, but here’s where many Nigerians make the mistake:
- You add two spoons of sugar: +60 to 80 calories
- You add Peak milk, Cowbell, or other: +100 to 150 calories
Throwing in sugar and milk means you have just doubled the calories on your plate. By the time you’re done, that bowl of pap is no longer as light as it initially was.
Can Pap Help with Weight Loss?
Our answer is yes. Pap can help with weight loss, but it won’t do the job alone. In fact, no single food can make you lose weight on its own.
Eating pap gives you a low-calorie, filling option for breakfast. If you replace a heavy breakfast with a plain bowl of pap and moi moi or boiled egg, you’ll be consuming fewer calories. Over time, it results in weight loss.
Remember the keyword plain. That means pap with no sugar, or with little honey instead of sugar, and no Peak milk. If you must add milk, use low-fat milk and keep the quantity small.
Does Pap Cause Weight Gain?
Plain pap doesn’t cause weight gain. What causes weight gain is adding too much sugar or milk, or eating it in large quantities. That said, there’s one big problem with depending on pap for weight loss, which is that it’s low in protein.
If you’re unaware, protein is one of the most important things you need when trying to lose weight. It keeps you full for longer and helps your body maintain muscle. Unfortunately, pap has very little of it.
When you eat pap in the morning with no protein source, you’ll be hungry again in one to two hours. That causes you to eat more food to make up for it, and that extra food means more calories. For this reason, we advise taking pap with moi moi, akara, boiled eggs, or beans. Adding them will help you stay full longer, and that’s the goal when trying to burn fat.
How to Eat Pap for Weight Loss
You can lose weight in Nigeria while eating pap if everything is done right. Here’s our simple guide to follow:
- Skip sugar: Use a very small amount of honey instead.
- Avoid processed milk: These are high in calories, but you can use low-fat milk in a small quantity if you must.
- Add protein: Take your pap with moi moi, boiled egg, or beans to keep you full.
- Do not eat it twice a day: Once a day is enough, especially if you are not very active.
- Watch your portion: A medium bowl is fine. A large one, however, is still a lot of carbs, even without sugar.
Brown Pap vs White Pap for Weight Loss
To be honest, brown pap is the better option if you are trying to lose weight. It has more fiber than white pap, which means it keeps you full and is slower to digest.
White pap is mostly from white corn and digests faster. As a result, it can cause your blood sugar to rise quickly and then drop again. That can make you hungry before you know it.
If you have a choice, go for brown pap, but if white is all you have, it still works. Just eat it with protein and without too much sugar.
Drawing the Curtains
Plain pap, with little or no sugar, no processed milk, and protein, is a light and reasonable breakfast for anyone trying to lose weight in Nigeria. But if you eat it with a lot of sugar and milk every day, it won’t help you. The problem is not pap; instead, it’s what most of us put inside it. Fix that, and pap can work for you.
Is Pap Good for Weight Loss? FAQs
Is Ogi Pap good for weight loss?
Yes, Ogi pap can support weight loss when eaten plain because it’s low in calories and easy to digest. The issue is that most people add sugar and milk, which increases the calories.
Can I eat white pap for weight loss?
Yes, you can eat white pap for weight loss, but brown pap is the best for this goal. White pap digests fast and can make you hungry again quickly.
What to replace pap with for weight loss?
You can replace pap with oats, brown rice, and guinea corn. Eating these alternatives in moderate amounts can help with losing weight.