I’m sure you hear regularly from various media outlets, “obesity in America is at epidemic proportions” but did you know that childhood obesity has tripled over the last 30 years? That’s a frightening fact. And, its mostly in part due to the decline of nutrient dense foods in the “standard American diet” and the ever increasing amount of sugar our kids are eating.
As I say in my first book, Chill Out & Get Healthy, “sugar is evil”. As a parent, I’m sure you know the negative effects sugar can have on health (and waistlines) and you do your best to avoid sugar for yourself and your family. I’m sure foods like Twinkies and Yodels rarely make an appearance in your pantry, but what about cereal?
The Environmental Working Group recently released a report on the amount of sugar found in cereals. What they found is that some of the most popular children’s cereals out there have more sugar in them (serving to serving) than a Twinkie! Yikes!
To make it easy for you—I am sharing this list of the best and worst cereals on the market so you can make the best choices for your family.
The Worst Cereals:
- Kellogg’s Honey Smacks
- Post Golden Crisp
- Kellogg’s Froot Loops Marshmallow
- Quaker Oats Cap’n Crunch’s Berries
- Quaker Oats Cap’n Crunch Original
- Quaker Oats Oh!s
- Kellogg’s Smorz
- Kellogg’s Apple Jacks
- Kellogg’s Froot Loops Original
The Best Cereals:
- Ambrosial Granola
- Go Raw
- Grandy Oats
- Kaia Foods
- Laughing Giraffe
- Lydia’s Organic
- Nature’s Path Organics
The “OK” Cereals– these guys fall into the “ok” category… and in my opinion are “OK” to have once in a while.
- Kellogg’s Mini-Wheats: Unfrosted Bite- Size, Frosted Big Bite, Frosted Bite-Size and Frosted Little Bite
- General Mills Cheerios Original
- General Mills Kix Original
What I usually recommend to my patients is that they try to keep the amount of added sugar they eat per day to under 15grams. That is added sugar—not sugar that naturally occurs in food such as fruit. So, read your labels and watch the sugar. Of course, everything in moderation but the less sugar, the better. Your health and the health of your family will flourish with less added sugar.
Licensed acupuncturist, herbalist and book author Aimee E. Raupp is a women’s health and fertility expert. Her growing practice focuses on improving health and beauty, preventing disease and increasing fertility among women whose health and wellness are challenged by the demands, stressors and imbalances of Western culture. Find her on Facebook and Twitter @aimeeraupp.
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