Kellogg’s Special K cereal is the best known attempt to market cereal as a diet food. Now, I doubt that most professional nutritionists worth their salt would recommend cereal as two meals a day for a serious answer to your long-term weight loss goals. But that’s not to say it should be discounted as a healthy food option that can and should be a regular part of your diet.
Cereal, especially those with a formidable amount of fiber, can be a great way to start your day, and avoid premature hunger pangs before lunch. I, for one, enjoy cereal… even if it’s as an evening sweet snack. It’s usually a better choice than other sweet tooth solutions.
A study confirms the benefits. The Journal of the American Dietetic Association published a study that revealed women who included high-fiber cereal in their low-calorie eating plans lost weight without losing crucial nutrients.
“Go for cereal with at least 5 grams of fiber per serving and less than 10 grams of sugar per 100 calories,” says SELF Editor-in-Chief Lucy Danziger.
Danziger recommends the following brands: Kashi GoLean, Fiber One Honey Clusters and Nature’s Path Optimum Slim.
The American Dietetic Association recommends the following for a hot cereal on a cold winter day:
- Use milk or your favorite fruit juice in place of water while cooking cereal.
- Blend in chopped fresh fruit, dried fruit or nuts.
- Top with powdered milk for added calcium.
- Liven up your cereal with spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice or cloves.
I wonder if those Danziger recommendations have extra, added fiber. 5 gm per 100 cal is a huge amount. Breakfast cereals with that much fiber are quite uncommon.
By comparison, Quaker Oats, dry, has 4 gm per 100 cal, and Kelloggs Special K has 1 gm per 117 cal.
Fiber is getting so popular that some food manufacturers are adding EXTRA fiber to a product already made out of whole grains.
-Steve
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