Honey Smacks, the sweet breakfast cereal with the lovable frog, contains more sugar (19 grams) per cup than a Twinkie (18 grams)!
Earlier this year, the Interagency Working Group on Food Marketed to Children proposed voluntary guidelines for cereal nutrition, which recommended no more than 26% sugar (by weight). According to a recent report from theEnvironmental Working Group, the 10 worst cereals contained over 41% sugar! Your favorites aren’t left out…Froot Loops, Apple Jacks, andCap’n Crunch all rank in the 10 worst.
In an email to NPR, Kellogg’s vice president of nutrition said Honey Smacks isn’t marketed to children and is seldom eaten by them. Really?!?! When you see parents and their children walking down the cereal aisle, is it usually the adults or children pointing to the smiling cartoon characters on the boxes?
This is, unfortunately, just another example of how we’re poisoning our children with the food choices we make. The white sugar or high fructose corn syrup (now marketed as corn sugar) added to nearly all processed foods causes abnormal spikes in blood sugar leading to energy crashes and high levels of insulin that lead to diabetes. Poor nutrition has also been associated with ADHD, learning disabilities, allergies, cancer, and most other diseases. As Representative Rosa DeLauro said in the EWG report, “Our children deserve better.”
- Whole food nutrition. Processed foods (foods with ingredients you can’t pronounce) are poorer quality and have less nutritional value.
- More veggies and fruits. They contain vital antioxidants, minerals, and vitamins which help the body develop and immune system function better. Fruits are sweet but contain the necessary fiber to make it ok for your blood sugar!
- Cartoons are not your friends. Food companies market to children because they know bright colors and lovable characters will make kids want to buy their less-than-healthy product.
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