General Mills Reducing Sugar in Kids’ Cereals
Well, it’s about time, don’t you think? I remember from reading Gary Taubes epic work, Good Calories, Bad Calories, where the obesity researchers were closely tied to the sugar and soft drink industries and they defended sugar claiming that it was not in any way unhealthy. Now, it seems we have a bit of a reversal as the cereal makers are getting a little nervous as big cities like New York are beginning to target sugar. General Mills said it will cut the sugar in 10 of its cereals to single-digit grams of sugar per serving. It did not provide a timeline for reaching this goal, but it builds on reductions the company rolled out two years ago. This is welcome news and I have long advocated that any reduction in sugar that parents can achieve for their children is only going to help.
As Kelly Brownell, director of the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at Yale University. was quoted to say, “The reduction … doesn’t represent perfection but it represents improvement,” said Kelly Brownell. Several cereal makers have adjusted their products to address the growing concern.
Last year, Kellogg Co. reformulated a number of its U.S. cereals including Froot Loops, Apple Jacks and Corn Pops. The changes vary according to product but decreased the sugar by 1 to 3 grams per serving. Kellogg also added fiber to some of its cereals. Post Foods said it has cut the sugar content in both Fruity Pebbles and Cocoa Pebbles by 20 percent. And it increased the vitamin D in Pebbles and Honeycomb cereals this year.
The Food and Drug Administration has been cracking down on food packaging that touts misleading health benefits. That led to one industry organization halt its “Smart Choices” labeling program, which was attacked because sugary cereals like Fruit Loops qualified for the label.
General Mills’ effort won’t change some products like Franken Berry and Boo Berry, which are generally considered children’s cereals and once had 15 grams of sugar each. General Mills has since reduced that to 12 grams, but the cereals aren’t included in the new effort because they don’t advertise on TV shows or other media aimed at children.
It shouldn’t surprise us that Cheerios are largely considered to be the best diet cereal simply because it has less than a gram of sugar per serving. It has little to do with “portion control” except that obviously, if you eat less of it, you will ingest less sugar. The difference is the effect on blood sugar, not the amount of calories.
General Mills said the move is a reaction to consumers’ desire for less sugar, rather than a response to criticism. The company said it has taken a number of steps — including increasing whole grain and nutrients in its cereals — to improve their healthfulness.
The company wouldn’t say how the cereal’s formulas would be adjusted except for the sugar reduction but said it would not use artificial sweeteners.
Cereal makers argue that their products provide essential nutrients and are a healthy breakfast. But health experts are concerned that added sugar, which provides no nutritional value, could contribute to weight gain.
The Rudd Center found children who ate highly sweetened cereals ate roughly twice as much as those who ate low-sugar cereals. And some say children are more susceptible to the marketing by food makers.
I’m very happy that they don’t replace the missing sugar with artificial sweeteners, but if not, I wonder if children will continue to enjoy these nutritionally bankrupt cereals. We have come to rely on taste to our detriment. Food makers manipulate us with very tasty and inexpensive refined carbohydrates and this causes us to be unhealthy. Sure, cereals may be injected with vitamins but that does not mean that people are actually absorbing the vitamins. A traditional 1950′s era breakfast of bacon or sausage and eggs minus the bread would be a much better and healthier choice. There are lots of additives in bacon and sausage but this is highly preferable to a sugar cereal.
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on December 16, 2009 at 10:41 am
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[...] View original post here: Zeroing In On Health – The Blog! » General Mills Reducing Sugar in … [...]
on December 16, 2009 at 12:48 pm
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[...] http://blog.zeroinginonhealth.com/?p=1450General Mills has since reduced that to 12 grams, but the cereals aren’t included in the new effort because they don’t advertise on TV shows or other media aimed at children. It shouldn’t surprise us that Cheerios are largely considered … [...]
on December 19, 2009 at 10:23 am
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[...] http://blog.zeroinginonhealth.com/?p=1450General Mills has since reduced that to 12 grams, but the cereals aren’t included in the new effort because they don’t advertise on TV shows or other media aimed at children. It shouldn’t surprise us that Cheerios are largely considered … [...]