At first glance, oatmeal raisin cookies appear quite healthy. After all, they do contain a whole grain and fruit. Take a close look at your cookie, though. Chances are, it contains quite a bit of refined sugar along with some saturated fat. Eat sparingly or make your own healthy oatmeal raisin cookies.
Calories
A small oatmeal raisin cookie that is 2 5/8 inches in diameter contains 65 calories, according to the USDA. Of course, you may want to eat more than one. Also consider that many oatmeal raisin cookies -- especially those that are commercially prepared -- are much larger and will contain many more calories. It is easy to consume too many calories when eating calorie-dense food such as cookies.
Fat
One small oatmeal raisin cookie contains more than 2 g of fat. The fat in the cookie is primarily monounsaturated and polyunsaturated, with only a little saturated fat. This ratio can change, however, if you prepare oatmeal raisin cookies using a recipe that calls for a liberal amount of butter. Stick with recipes that use healthy spreads or oils instead of butter or hydrogenated shortening.
Protein and Carbohydrates
Oatmeal raisin cookies contain much more carbohydrate than protein. In fact, one small cookie contains 1 g of protein and 10 g of carbohydrate. A small amount of the carbohydrate in an oatmeal raisin cookie comes from the fiber contained in oatmeal and raisins. Much of the remaining carbohydrates are due to sugars. For this reason, if you are concerned about your consumption of refined carbohydrates, you should limit the amount of oatmeal raisin cookies you eat.
Substitutions
If you want to eat oatmeal raisin cookies as part of a healthy diet, preparing them at home is your best bet. You can substitute canola oil for butter or shortening to replace saturated fat with unsaturated fats. If you do so, keep in mind that the cookies won't spread, as there are no ingredients that melt. Use a fork to flatten the cookie. You can also substitute applesauce for all or part of the oil, which will save you calories. You can eliminate much of the refined carbohydrate in an oatmeal raisin cookie recipe. Use a low-calorie sweetener in place of the sugar and replace white flour with whole wheat flour.
Healthy Additions
Add a cup of nuts to a batch of oatmeal raisin cookies to add beneficial fats and fiber. Walnuts, for example, provide healthy omega-3 fatty acids, which may help reduce risk factors for heart disease as well as possibly helping to prevent certain cancers and inflammatory diseases, according Frank Sacks, Professor of Cardiovascular Disease Prevention at the Harvard School of Public Health.
A teaspoon of cinnamon will add a boost of flavor to your oatmeal raisin cookies. It may also help to reduce your blood sugar levels according to Mary Alice Gettings, of Penn State's College of Agricultural Science.
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