Breakfast cereal review

04.What to look for

Breakfast really is the most important meal of the day. Breakfast boosts our metabolism so we burn food faster, and studies consistently show people who regularly eat breakfast are less likely to be overweight. Breakfast improves alertness, concentration, mental performance, memory and can even help lift your mood.

CHOICE recommends you look for a breakfast cereal that is high in fibre and low in saturated fat, sugar and salt. Beware of enticing terms like ‘added vitamins and minerals’. Examine the nutrition information panel: in many cases, this spin disguises a cereal that contains too much sugar, salt or both, and is too low in fibre to be considered healthy.

In the table we’ve used traffic light symbols to indicate levels of saturated fat, sugar and salt – red indicates far too much and therefore a cereal that’s best avoided. Cereals in the tables that don’t have a red light are reasonably healthy choices.

HIGH DIETARY FIBRE helps maintain a healthy digestive system and decrease the risk of bowel cancer. In countries with high fibre and wholegrain diets diseases like bowel cancer, diabetes and coronary heart disease (CHD) are less common. On average, Australians consume 18g-25g of fibre daily. Health authorities recommend that women consume 25g of fibre each day and men consume 30g. Children have lower fibre requirements, from 14g/day (at the age of 1-3 years) to 28g/day for boys and 22g/day for girls (from 14-18 years of age). Generally boys need a little more fibre than girls. Choosing one of the very high-fibre or high-fibre breakfast cereals will set you on your way to meeting the daily fibre needs.

LOW SATURATED FAT This isn’t a major issue with most breakfast cereals. Nuts and seeds contribute most of the fat in breakfast cereals but this is mostly of the healthy, polyunsaturated form. Only two breakfast cereals get the red light for saturated fat, GoldenVale (Aldi) Healthy Starts Fruit and Nut and Barnhouse Mr Reen's Krunchy Cranberry Kirsch Original. To be eligible for the Heart Foundation Tick, a breakfast cereal must contain (among other criteria) no more than 1.5g per 100g of saturated fat. However, as CHOICE has previously discovered, the Tick doesn't necessarily guarantee you're choosing the best product. Manufacturers choose to participate in the program, and, interestingly, in this review of the 28 products with the Tick, 27 are made by market leaders Kellogg's and Uncle Tobys (Vogels Ultra Bran Soy & Linseed also has the tick), whereas other cereals, such as market leader Sanitarium Weet-Bix and Uncle Tobys Shredded Wheat meet the Tick criteria but don't carry a Tick. Using the nutrition information panel is a better guide.

LOW SUGAR Sugars add flavour, colour, aroma and texture to breakfast cereals. Unfortunately, more than half of the cereals we analysed have too much (more than 15g per 100g) and earned a red light. Bear in mind, however, that for some breakfast cereals, the high sugar content comes from fruit. Check to see where fruit or sugars sit in the ingredients. That should give you an idea of whether the sugar is coming from added sugar like ‘glucose syrup’ or natural sugars in fruit. Avoid cereals high in added sugars.

LOW SODIUM (SALT) Salt is linked to high blood pressure and increased risk of heart disease. About 75% of the sodium we eat comes from salt used in processed foods. We should aim to consume up to 1,600mg of sodium each day (or 4g of salt), however we need much less than this (460mg – 960mg of sodium) to meet our body’s sodium requirements. On average, Australians consume up to ten times more than the required amount. There’s no technical reason for high levels of salt in breakfast cereals, yet very few of the high fibre cereals get the green light for sodium content.

How healthy are your favourites?

Not much has changed since our 2009 review. The Top 10 sellers based on figures from Retail Worlds 2009 Annual report are still the same, without many nutritional improvements. 

Thumbs up 

Sanitarium Weet-Bix (19.8% of overall breakfast cereal volume). It’s great that the stand-out market leader is one of the best all-rounder breakfast cereals. A high-fibre option, its only letdown is its moderately high sodium. Sanitarium Weet-Bix Kids provides a low sodium option.

Kellogg’s Sultana Bran (4.4%) is a good family breakfast cereal. It’s high in fibre, and, even though it is high in sugar, this is mainly derived from the sultanas.

Kellogg’s All Bran (2.8%) is a very high-fibre option; however, it gets an amber light for sugar (added sugars) and sodium.

OK

Uncle Toby’s Plus (7.1%) is a range of seven cereals with a variety of supposed health needs. They have a moderate amount of sodium, but they are high in sugar. In most cases, the sugar is mainly from the dried fruit. However, according to the ingredients list, Essentials for Women and Omega 3 Lift have more added sugar than fruit. Four of the seven are high-fibre options (see table, XX), and are OK choices.

Kellogg’s Just Right Original (4.4%) has a moderate amount of fibre, and sultanas and dried apricot pieces contribute to the high sugar content. The only thing saving this cereal from getting a thumbs down is its low sodium content – something that very few cereals achieve.

Thumbs down

Kellogg’s Nutri-Grain (6.4%), which promotes itself as “ironman food”, is among the worst breakfast cereals nutritionally and shouldn’t be considered as an everyday option. It’s low in fibre and is very high in sugar and sodium. Sugar is listed as the second ingredient.

Kellogg’s Special K (3.8%), which is marketed as the basis in a two-week healthy living and exercise plan. It comes very close to earning red traffic lights for sugars and sodium but scrapes through with amber. This, combined with its low fibre content – one 30g serve provides a mere 3% of a woman’s daily fibre requirement – earn it a thumbs down.

Kellogg’s Coco Pops (3.3%) is one of the most popular kid’s cereals, it’s also one of the least healthy. It’s low in fibre and has one of the highest sugar contents. While previous advertisements boasted about its (added) vitamins and minerals, now at least, it doesn’t pretend to be what it’s not. Kellogg’s currently markets the cereal as a “tasty breakfast treat that kids have loved for generations … just like a chocolate milkshake, only crunchy!”

Kellogg’s Cornflakes (3.7%) supposedly made up of, “Light flakes of sun-ripened corn that not only taste good… [they] are good for you.” Unfortunately, a few added vitamins, minerals and a moderate amount of sugar can’t make up for its low fibre and very high sodium content.

Kellogg’s Crunchy Nut Cornflakes (2.7%) very high in sugar and moderately high in sodium and total fat. This breakfast cereal is also too low in fibre to be considered as an everyday cereal.

Colours and additives

Kellogg’s Froot Loops, and their budget equivalents, Woolworths Homebrand Fruity Rings and Coles Frooty Rings, contain at least two of six artificial colours that have been linked to increased hyperactivity in children. Freedom Foods Tropicos, a similar product, competes favourably with these offenders, as it uses natural flavours and colours, but it has one downfall - high sugar content.

The preservative sulphur dioxide (220), which can also be added in the form of sulphur metabisulphite (223), is typically used in cereals that contain dried fruits. While sodium dioxide used in very low levels is safe for most people, it destroys vitamin B1 (thiamine) and can trigger asthma attacks. We found 18 breakfast cereals contain this preservative, all of which also contain dried fruits. Seven Uncle Toby’s cereals contain the preservative - it is noted on the packaging that it’s used to maintain colour and shelf life.

Kids’ cereals

CHOICE analysed 38 cereals marketed to or for children and, amazingly, only three can be recommended as everyday cereals: Sanitarium Weet-Bix Kids, Coles Whole Wheat Biscuits and Kellogg’s Sultana Bran. The latter two are good choices overall. They are high in fibre and the only two to get the green light for sugar. Weet-Bix Kids also earns a green light for sodium, while a moderate sodium content of Coles Whole Wheat Biscuits earns it an amber light. Freedom Foods Rice Puffs is also a good choice, but gets the amber light for sugar and sodium.

While the colourful packaging and cute characters capture kids’ attention, don’t be fooled by the claims crammed onto every panel of the box. Many cereals claim to be a source of vitamins and minerals, but, if your child eats well, they won’t need the extra vitamins or minerals that a sugary, salty, low fibre cereal offers. It’s best to scan the nutrition information panel to make sure the cereal is a good source of fibre and low in fat, sugar and sodium as well.

Advertising hype vs reality

Breakfast cereal manufacturers are wizards of spin. They’ve been spruiking vitamins and dietary fibre for years, and there’s no shortage of trendy new health claims.

• Wholegrains There’s good evidence that wholegrains help reduce the risk of heart disease and some cancers, and their dietary fibre is good for digestive health. But while Uncle Tobys Shredded Wheat is made from 100% wholegrains, many of the cereals aimed at kids don’t contain any wholegrains. “Supergrains” Some cereals contain unusual grains such as spelt, quinoa, kamut or amaranth. Kamut and Spelt are merely varieties of normal wheat; there are differences in protein and fibre levels but they’re still not suitable for people with allergies to wheat. Quinoa and amaranth are gluten-free but there’s little evidence they confer special health benefits. For more information, see our report on wholegrains and supergrains. 

• Low GI There’s no conclusive evidence that all low GI (glycaemic index) foods are automatically health-promoting. A low GI diet can be beneficial if you suffer from diabetes, and may be useful for weight watchers. However, a low GI diet isn’t the only important thing – make sure you’re choosing a healthy cereal first and then look for the low GI option. Any GI claims should be backed up by reliably measured GI values – 55 and under is classified as low. The only way to be certain is to look for the GI logo which means the food must meet specific nutrition criteria as well.
  
• Source of fibre The “source of fibre” claim on a cereal box means less than you might think. The food standards code of practice allows this claim on a food that contains not less than 1.5g of fibre per serving which amounts to a modest 5% fibre for cereals with a 30g serving. This isn’t enough, in our view, for a food that should boost your fibre intake for the whole day.