Are Those Cookies in Your Cereal Bowl?

I grew up in a mostly sugar-free home.

We didn’t have cookies at lunch. Candy? That was strictly on Halloween.

Cakes were reserved for birthdays.

And when it came time for breakfast every morning, we never had Cocoa Puffs or Apple Jacks in our bowls either.

Cheerios was the sweetest cereal we were allowed to eat.

Although I didn’t appreciate it at the time, my parents were on to something.

A report from the nonprofit Environmental Working Group recently found that one cup of 44 different children’s cereals had more sugar than three Chips Ahoy! cookies.

Cookies.

That’s what a lot of kids are eating for breakfast.

As a parent, it concerns me to see so many children struggling with weight issues at what seems to be a younger and younger age. And more children than ever are being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. Sadly, it’s a chronic condition that can no longer be called accurately “adult-onset diabetes.”

I also know it’s really hard to get some kids to make healthy food choices in the morning. Putting a bowl of sugary rainbow pellets in front of them is pretty enticing. But it’s not the right thing to do.

Remember the banana? It’s sweet, too. And a whole lot healthier.

Thankfully, the smart folks at the Environmental Working Group had a list of “healthy” cereals that are easy to find. The list includes: Kellogg’s Mini-Wheats: Unfrosted Bite-Size, Frosted Big Bite, Frosted Bite-Size, and Frosted Little Bite.

Oh, and my parents’ favorite: Cheerios.

Alice Warchol is a freelance health blog writer.

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