Whole Grain Cereals

[ladyzman]

by: Zach Bashore

If you`ve been to the grocery store lately you probably have noticed the new trend going on with breakfast cereals. Many of your favorite cereals have switched to whole grain wheat as the main ingredient. Are these cereals good for you or is this just another gimmick used by companies to sell more of their product? I am going to explain some of the positives and negatives associated with the "healthy cereals" you have recently been eating. I am also going to give you some examples of the different marketing techniques used by cereal manufactures to sell more of their product to the consumer.
In the past couple of years cold cereal has been given the reputation of being unhealthy. Since most cereals contain high amounts of sugar, most bodybuilders try keeping away from it for a couple of reasons. The sugar can make you even more hungry and you could end up eating more than your body requires. It is also considered a high G.I. carb source which can spike your insulin levels rapidly, leaving your body feeling low on energy. Now that cereal companies have switched to whole grain, it leaves you wondering if it`s actually a good part of a trainee`s diet.

Many cereals such as Frosted Mini Wheats and Wheaties have been around for years. Most of these cereals also contain a decent amount of fiber which
helps with digestion and also makes you feel full faster. People always considered these as a healthy part of your breakfast so why wouldn`t the new whole grain cereals be considered a good source of carbohydrates as well?

Will all of your favorite cereals switch to whole grain wheat or is this just another trick used by cereal companies to sell more of their product to us? Only time will tell but we also must remember the different marketing techniques these companies have used in the past. A good example is when they state the cereal is low in fat and people start to think they can eat however much of it they want and not gain any fat. People don`t realize that the sugar in these cereals is just as bad for you as saturated fat. They also make you believe that their product is low in calories. If you look on the label you will notice it does have a low amount of calories but the serving size is less than a cup.

If you want to start eating cereal you must make sure the words "whole grain wheat" are the first three words on the list of ingredients or you will be doing yourself more harm than good. I love cereal and like the fact that I can eat a bowl of my favorite brand without feeling guilty afterwards. Portion control is crucial. You must have the discipline to control how much you eat no matter how healthy you think it is. If your having to much trouble with a good thing then you need to accept the fact that your body doesn`t respond well to a certain food. If you have that discipline needed to control your portion sizes then these new whole grain wheat cereals are for you. Until next time.

[1junglo]

Yup, portion control is very, very important when your on a diet...
...but sometimes very, very hard!

[bigblue]

I think the most important things to consider here is portion control as mentioned above and to pay attention to labels. I do not know about Wheates but there is actually not much difference in nutritional values in Frosted Mini wheats than in Lucky Charms like my kids eat.

[ladyzman]

i loved cereals big time, but that all ended once i found oatmeal LOL oh well

[dms71455]

I love cereal but untill recently did not realize how much sugar some of my favorites contained.

[rad1]

I've been looking for cereals with low sugar and whole grains, they are out there and still good!