Breakfast cereals have been a very popular part of people’s diets for decades. It is considered healthy at best and at worst, a harmless indulgence. However, as per the latest changes by food and nutrition experts, all breakfast cereals are definitely not made equal, with some breakfast cereals no longer being considered healthy.
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Also, consumers need to be careful about how much cereal they eat since too much of it could be downright dangerous for health.
Harmful breakfast cereals
As reported by CNBC, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recently changed its parameters of what food can be labelled as ‘healthy.’
To be eligible to be categorised as ‘healthy,’ FDA’s updated criterions require cereals have three-fourth ounces of whole grains and no more than 1 gram of saturated fat, 230 milligrams of sodium and 2.5 grams of added sugars.
As per their updated parameters, here are the breakfast cereals which actually cannot be deemed healthy anymore.
- Raisin Bran (9g of added sugars)
- Honey Nut Cheerios (12g of added sugars)
- Corn Flakes (300mg of sodium; 4g of added sugars)
- Honey Bunches of Oats, Honey Roasted (8g of added sugars)
- Frosted Mini Wheats (12g of added sugars)
- Life (8g of added sugars)
- Special K (270mg of sodium; 4g of added sugars)
Overeating breakfast cereals
Along with avoiding unhealthy cereals, you should also be mindful of how much cereal you actually consume. As per a report by Express, over-consuming cereals can come with its own set of serious and hidden risks.
A 50-year-old Brighton man experienced liver damage due to over-consuming cereals. He was eating bowls of cereal whenever he would run out of time to prepare his meals. This seemingly harmless habit took a huge toll on his health.
As per doctors, due to the amount of iron in the cereal he was consuming, his body was receiving far more than the required daily allowance of iron. This ended up poisoning his liver cells and making him sick. After cutting out cereals and other iron-rich food from his diet, his health improved markedly.
Sources used:
CNBC: ‘These 7 cereals do not qualify as ‘healthy’ according to the FDA’s new criteria’
Express: ‘Man, 51, damages liver from overeating breakfast cereal - the 'dangerous' and hidden risk’
US Food and Drug Administration (FDA): 'FDA Proposes Updated Definition of ‘Healthy’ Claim on Food Packages to Help Improve Diet, Reduce Chronic Disease'
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