Breakfast is the most important meal of the day by eating a nutritious breakfast you better chances of reaching the recommended five servings of fruits and vegetables a day and youre more likely to get all the nutrients you need. The best breakfast cereals are rich in fiber, something most of us dont get enough of. Sitting down to a healthy, high fiber diet could be the key to maintaining or losing weight. Served hot or cold the label on breakfast cereals supplies nutritional information based on a serving size, usually one ounce. Various additives are added during processing. Sweeteners including sugar or corn syrup. There is no nutritional need for sugar and several varieties do not contain added sugar. These same cereals are lower in fiber. Some cereals are designed to appeal to children. Fruit Loops, Lucky Charms, etc. provide about 13 grams of sugar per ounce and many contain more than 300 mg. of sodium per ounce. Cereals with the most sugar contain the least salt. Salt, flavorings, preservatives, vitamin or minerals are added when enriched. Nuts and raisins are other nutritious additions to cereals. The fiber in breakfast cereals is mainly wheat bran, which is essentially insoluble fiber. The body needs both kinds of fiber, soluble, and insoluble, provided in a balanced diet. The five cereals I chose to review were Cheerios, Honey-Nut Cheerios, Total, Special K, and Oatmeal. Cheerios are made form whole grain oats. They have no artificial colors or flavors and only one gram of sugar. They are low in fat and have no saturated fat or cholesterol. They are also an excellent source of folic acid and fiber. Cheerios is also the leading cereal that is clinically proven to lower blood cholesterol levels when eaten as part of a healthy diet. Honey-Nut Cheerios is honey sweetened whole grain. They have only ten more calories than Cheerios and a lot more flavor. They are also low in fat and have no cholesterol. Out...
