YOU’VE PROBABLY HEARD OATS HELP LOWER CHOLESTEROL, but did you know this is due to a particular type of soluble fibre called beta-glucan? This fibre is present in wholegrain oats and oat bran and, once eaten, it forms a sticky gel in your digestive system to which cholesterol in your gut becomes attached. Unable to be absorbed back into your bloodstream, the cholesterol is carried out of your body.