With the #oats feed on Instagram approaching one million snaps of tempting bowls of porridge decorated with colourful, beautifully chopped fruit, dollops of peanut butter and even a chunk or two of chocolate, it's easy to see why it's the latest "in" healthy breakfast. In terms of its popularity on the photo-sharing site, porridge is on its way up, storming over granola and yoghurt parfaits.
The Telegraph's food writer Deliciously Ella shares a glimpse of her delicious-looking porridge on Instagram
Porridge is so on-trend that 26 Grains, a breakfast café specialising in porridge, recently popped up in Covent Garden. The porridge heaven in Neal's Yard has eight different bowls of oats on its menu, with both sweet and savoury options – egg and kale for the savoury fans, or salted caramel pear porridge, with coconut milk, oats, salted caramel pears, cinnamon greek yoghurt, and a pistachio and sesame seed sprinkle for those that need a sweet kick in the morning.Fans include supermodel Kate Moss and the Prime Minster David Cameron, along with health food writer Deliciously Ella and Honestly Healthy's Natasha Corrett, among others.
Austrian blogger Stefanie Gold Marie shows off her picture-perfect bowl of oats
So, what's got everyone so hot on porridge? Oats have a low GI (glycaemic index) which means they are full of slow-releasing healthy carbohydrates which keep you fuller for longer, plus they're packed with vitamins B and E, protein, calcium and fibre.
A study earlier this year conducted by Harvard University even found that whole grains reduce the risk of heart disease, along with other major chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes.
Porridge fan Siobhan O'Brien, known as Superfood Siobhan online, has more than 130k followers on Instagram
Add to all of that the world of toppings available to you to maximise the health factors – super ingredients include everything from blueberries, almond butter and chia seeds, to cacao nibs, hemp hearts, pumpkin seeds and shavings of coconut – and you have a winning breakfast for starting the day.How to make porridge is a topic of discussion among oats' fans. Tradition has it that it's best to soak your oats overnight in water with a pinch of salt. But foodies such as Ella, and Natasha lean towards a more morning-friendly method of preparing on the spot – which takes just minutes.
