With the FDA redefining what foods are labeled “healthy,” it’s looking like kids these days are going to have a less sugary childhood than their parents had. Possibly the most popular breakfast staples for kids, cereal is set to be impacted by the new federal guidelines. That means many of the brands we thought were healthy growing up no longer fall into that category. The new “healthy” was introduced at this year’s White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health, where the FDA expressed its goal of ensuring the term is consistent with current nutrition science. The organization pointed out that more than 80% of Americans aren’t eating enough fruit, vegetables and diary, while consuming too much added sugar, saturated fat, and sodium. According to the new guidelines, a cereal would need to contain ¾ ounces of whole grains and contain no more than 1 gram of saturated fat, 230mg of sodium, and 2½ grams of added sugar. That means that these cereals no longer qualify as healthy:
- Raisin Bran (9g of added sugar)
- Honey Nut Cheerios (12g of added sugar)
- Corn Flakes (300mg sodium, 4g of added sugar)
- Honey Bunches of Oats (8g of added sugar)
- Frosted Mini Wheats (12g of added sugar)
- Life (8g of added sugar)…….Oh no, Mikey!
- Special K (270mg of sodium, 4g of added sugar)
Sadly — or maybe thankfully — many of our favorite go-to “healthy” cereals were never that healthy to begin with. It’s actually surprising that Corn Flakes and Special K didn’t pass the healthy test, while the others are less surprising.
