Thursday, October 8, 2009

Kellogg's Owns Up to Un-Fit Fiber


Did you know there has been a 1344% increase in whole grain products since 2000? Common claims surrounding grains, such as “made with whole grain”, “good source of whole grain,” and “whole grain guaranteed” resonate strongly with nearly all adults (87%), indicating an increase in purchase interest in response to whole-grain content claims [1]. Interestingly, however, Americans are STILL not meeting the recommended 20 to 35 grams of fiber a day.


Kellogg’s called out cereal companies including General Mills, Quaker, Malt-O-Meal, Post…and themselves in a recent publication they published entitled, “Whole Grain Half Truths.” A recent survey conducted by Kellogg’s revealed that consumers purchase ‘whole-grain’ products in an effort to intake more fiber and increase the healthfulness of the foods they eat. The majority (73%) of consumers felt that purchasing products made with whole-grains translated into purchasing those products providing good sources of fiber [1].


Sadly, consumers are being lead astray with such beliefs. To aid consumers in choosing higher fiber breakfast cereals, Kellogg’s audited a sample of breakfast cereals used between January 2005 and August 2008. The data was drawn from a syndicated database including the major brands aforementioned. What Kellogg’s revealed was unfavorable for most commonly recognized cereal brands, especially General Mills.


0 grams of fiber
General Mills Rice Chex


1 gram of fiber
General Mills Chocolate Chex
General Mills Cinnamon Toast Crunch
General Mills Cocoa Puffs
General Mills Cookie Crisps
General Mills Corn Chex
General Mills Golden Grahams
General Mills Lucky Charms
General Mills Reese’s Puffs
Kellogg’s Fruit Harvest Strawberry-Blueberry
Kellogg’s Mini-Swirlz Cinnamon
Malt-O-Meal Honey & Oat Blenders Cereal
Malt-O-Meal Mashmallow Mateys


2 grams of fiber
General Mills Frosted Cheerios
General Mills Honey Nut Cheerios
General Mills Oat Clusters Cheerios
General Mills Oat Clusters Cheerios Crunch
General Mills Yogurt Burst Cheerios
Malt-O-Meal Cinnamon Toasters
Malt-O-Meal Honey Nut Scooters
Post Honey Bunches of Oats
Post Honey-Comb
Quaker Life
Quaker Maple & Brown Sugar Cereal


GOOD sources of fiber (3-4 grams)
General Mills Aspire
General Mills Cheerios
General Mills Kix
General Mills Nature Valley Organic
General Mills Total
General Mills Total Honey Clusters
General Mills Total Whole Grain
Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes Gold
Kellogg’s Low Fat Granola with Raisins
Kellogg’s Low Fat Granola without Raisins
Kellogg’s Mueslix
Kellogg’s Raisin Bran Crunch
Kellogg’s Smart Antioxidant
Kellogg’s Wild Animal Crunch
Quaker Natural Granola
Quaker Oatmeal Squares


EXCELLENT sources of fiber (5-11 grams)
General Mills Curves
General Mills Fiber One (Caramel Delight)
General Mills Fiber One Raisin Bran Clusters
General Mills Total Raisin Bran
Kellogg’s All-Bran Yogurt Bites
Kellogg’s Cracklin’ Oat Bran
Kellogg’s Mini-Wheats Frosted Bite Size
Kellogg’s Mini-Wheats Frosted Bite Size Blueberry Muffin
Kellogg’s Mini-Wheats Frosted Bite Size Strawberry Delight
Kellogg’s Mini-Wheats Frosted Bite Size Vanilla Creme
Kellogg’s Mini-Wheats Frosted Maple & Brown Sugar
Kellogg’s Mini-Wheats Frosted Original (Big Bite)
Kellogg’s Mini-Wheats Frosted Bite Size Cinnamon Streusel
Kellogg’s Mini-Wheats Un-Frosted Bite Site
Kellogg’s Raisin Bran
Kraft Vanilla Almond Crunch Cereal
Malt-O-Meal Frosted Mini Wheats
Malt-O-Meal Lightly Sweetened Whole Grain Cereal
Post Grape-Nuts
Post Healthy Classics Grape-Nuts
Post Honey Maid
Post Raisin Bran
Post Shredded Wheat Cereal
Quaker Oatmeal Squares


What Kellogg’s found:
-         At the time of the audit, 72 nationally distributed ready-to-eat cereal products included clearly visible whole-grain claims on their packaging
-         Of the cereals containing whole-grain health claims, fiber content ranged from 0 to 11 grams per serving
-         Of those cereals touting whole-grain ingredients, 32 (roughly half) were found to provide less than a “good” source of fiber (3 grams per serving)
-         Approximately 60% of breakfast cereals provided less than 1 gram of fiber


For more information from Kellogg’s, go here.


Also……………..


I heard back from “The Biggest Loser Resort at Fitness Ridge”. Here was their email in response:


Hi Nicole!
Thank you for your interest in the Biggest Loser Resort at Fitness Ridge!  Its great to hear from OK!  (I have family in Broken Arrow/Coweta/Tulsa)  We do have a RD, her name is Emily Fonnesbeck and she is registered with the ADA and is certified for Adult Weight Management through the commission of Dietetic Registration.  She has been with us for many years and teaches several lectures throughout the week so guests can learn about portion management, how to understand calories, and proper eating habits.  Her Bio can be found on our web page under the tab About Us, and Wellness Team. 


You can visit our website at www.biggestloserresort.com and under the "Our Program" tab, you can download our brochure for more information about us! Please call or email me and let me know how I can further assist you!


Best,
Matthew Arrington
The Biggest Loser Resort at Fitness Ridge
Toll Free 888-870-2639
Local 435-673-6600
www.biggestloserresort.com

 
And last, but not least, my diabetic meal pattern for yesterday:

Breakfast:
2 whole wheat waffles (2)
2 Tbsp peanut butter (0)
Banana (2)
     Total: 4 carbs

Lunch:
1 small serving leftover squash/goat cheese fettuccine (3 carbs)
1 cup Waldorf salad (1 carb)
     Total: 4 carbs

Snack:
4 wafer cookies (1 carb)

Dinner:
Tomato basil tortilla (2 carbs)
4 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breast (0 carbs)
Lettuce, tomato, and light ranch dressing (0 carbs)
20 oven baked fries (2 carbs)
     Total: 4 carbs

Snack:
5 Triscuits (1 carb)
1 ounce 2% cheese (0 carbs)

Exercise:
90-minute hockey game

3 comments:

  1. Great post Nicole. I just tweeted about it!

    Thanks for posting the e-mail you received from the Biggest Loser. That's good to know. I'd like to see her sometime as part of the show!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I am following you on Twitter now! I need to get into Twitter...I'm going to give it a go! Thanks for getting the word out there on whole grain gimmicks, I was rather in shock myself...so I know consumers will be, too!

    Nicole

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  3. I knind of feel like companies are adding nutrition claims to get the consumers to buy their products. While some cereals do have added fiber and such, they are still highly processed and filled with sugars. Thats just my two cents though. I would rather have some oatmeal :)

    ReplyDelete