Cheerios: The Awful Truth About Americas Favorite Cereal

The food industrys advertising marketers are very creative with their campaigns.
They know how to market food as natural and (if not better than) healthy. If they
put words like, healthy and natural on their products it must be true, right?
Well your familys favorite honey nut bowl of cereal is about to be exposed for
what it is really made of.

Protein Cheerios, Oats & Honey ingredient list :

whole grain oats, cluster (whole grain oats, brown sugar, soy protein, lentils,
sugar, corn syrup, natural fl avor, molasses, rice starch, caramel (sugar,
caramelized sugar syrup), salt, calcium carbonate, baking soda, color added, bht
added to preserve freshness), sugar, corn starch, honey, salt, refi ners syrup,
 tripotassium phosphate, rice bran and/or canola oil, color added, natural fl avor,
brown sugar, vitamin e (mixed tocopherols), bht added to preserve freshness.
vitamins and minerals: calcium carbonate, zinc and iron (minerals nutrients),
vitamin c (sodium ascorbate), a b vitamin (niacinamide), vitamin b6 (pyridoxine
hydrochloride), vitamin b2 (ribofl avin), vitamin b1 (thiamin mononitrate), vitamin
a (palmitate), a b vitamin (folic acid), vitamin b12, vitamin d3.

Cheerios: The Awful Truth About Americas

Favorite Cereal
Natural Oats
General Mills boasts about their use of natural oats in Cheerios. The fi rst
ingredient isnt even oats (remember, ingredients are listed in order by weight of
the ingredient) in seven out of the twelve Cheerios varieties currently sold in the
U.S.

Trisodium phosphate
One of the ingredients Cheerios are made from is a chemical called Trisodium
phosphate. Have you ever heard of this ingredient? According to Wikipedia,
Trisodium phosphate was found to be ecologically damaging. It is still being sold
and used in the USA as a cleaning agent, enema (laxative) and food additive. Toilet
bowl tablets use this ingredient in most brands on the market. It also used for
many other cleaning purposes, from cleaning your driveway to washing your
clothing. If thats not scary enough, Trisodium phosphate isnt recommended for
cleaning your house. It is known to stain the metal of your faucets and even
damage the grout around your tile.

Corn Starch
The second ingredient is corn starch. There is a great chance that this is coming
from genetically modifi ed sources, as today corn is one of the top 3 genetically
modifi ed crops grown. Not much in the way of nutritional value either.

Sugar
 The third ingredient- would you be shocked to know its sugar ? Sugar should not
be in the top fi ve ingredients of any foods your purchasing. Refi ned sugar
consumption damages health much more than we realize. It suppresses immunity
and causes weight gain.

Research has linked sugar consumption to numerous health conditions, including:

Premature aging
Various cancers breast, ovary, prostate, rectum, etc.
Diabetes
Digestive problems, including chronic indigestion
Fatigue and low energy
Heart disease
Hyperactivity and concentration problems
Loss of muscle mass
Nutritional defi ciencies, including decreased ability to absorb calcium and
magnesium
Osteoporosis
Tooth decay and gum disease
Yeast infections

Monoglycerides are single fatty acids attached to a glycerol molecule.

Basically, they are modifi ed fats, which are used to combine ingredients, such as
oil and water. According to VRG.org, the commercial source may be either animal
(cow- or hog-derived) or vegetable, and they may be synthetically made as well.

Tocopherols are a series of organic compounds consisting of various

methylated phenols. They are mainly used to preserve food, especially oils from
going rancid and usually have vitamin E activity.

Foods with Added Vitamins

To supplement a diet, food that have vitamins and mineral additives may seem like
a healthy boost, but it turns out that the added nutrients can be especially
harmful to young children, pregnant women and senior citizens.

A new report from the Environmental Working Group studied breakfast cereals
and snack bars and found that more than 140 of them are causing harm to
consumers because of the over-fortifi cation.
 These excessively fortifi ed foods are causing nearly half of American children
(ages eight and under) to consume potentially dangerous amounts of Vitamin B3
(niacin), Vitamin A (retinol) and Zinc.

Food manufacturers misleading marketing tactics and outdated nutritional

labeling guidelines can lead children to consuming the potentially dangerous
foods, the EWG research found:

Heavily fortifi ed foods may sound like a good thing, but it when it comes to
children and pregnant women, excessive exposure to high nutrient levels could
actually cause short or long-term health problems, Renee Sharp, EWGs research
director and co-author of the report, said in a news release.

Manufacturers use vitamin and mineral fortifi cation to sell their products, adding
amounts in excess of what people need and more than might be prudent for young
children to consume. Processed sugars, salt, and oils increase infl ammation,
which increases the risk of heart disease. Cheerios markets their cereal to
suggest it is of all things, healthy for your heart. After reading these ingredients,
how could this be true. A chemically, GMO, created sugar coated cereal. May I
suggest you look into companies and products that are certifi ed organic and/or at
least GMO free for example, to offer at your breakfast table? Your heart and
family will thank you for making this informed choice.