Liebman and her colleague, Jayne Hurley, a senior nutritionist at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, came up with a “Best Bites” rating system for cereals in their Nutrition Action Health Letter. To receive the seal of approval, cereals must have the following:
- Little or no refined grains OR the first two ingredients are whole grain, bran, fruit or soy
- No more than 250 calories per cup
- At least 3 grams of fiber for lighter cereals (a serving weighs about 1 oz or 30 grams) or at least 6 grams of fiber for heavier cereals (a serving weighs about 2 oz or 55 grams)
- No artificial sweeteners like aspartame
- Post Bran Flakes, 130 calories, 5 g of fiber, 1.5 tsp sugar per cup
- Kashi GOLEAN, 140 calories, 10 g of fiber (includes isolated fiber), 1.5 tsp sugar per cup
- General Mills Fiber One 80 Calories, 110 calories, 10 g of fiber (includes isolated fiber), 1 tsp sugar per cup
- Kellogg’s Frosted Mini-Wheats Little Bites, 190 calories, 6 g of fiber, 3 tsp sugar per cup
- Whole Foods 365 Organic Raisin Bran, 180 calories, 6 g of fiber, 4 tsp sugar per cup
(SPECIAL: ‘Healthy’ Foods Nutritionists Won’t Touch)
The the Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity created a nutrition score system based on cereals’ total calories and mix of healthy and unhealthy ingredients like sugar, sodium and fiber. Here are five of the highest-scoring cereals on the center’s list:
- Post Shredded Wheat Original, 150 calories, 5.3 g of fiber, 0.4 g of sugar per 2 biscuits (46 g)
- Barbara’s Bakery Shredded Wheat, 140 calories, 5 g of fiber, 0 g of sugar per 2 biscuits (40 g)
- Kashi 7 Whole Grains Puffs, 70 calories, 1 g of fiber, 0 g of sugar per cup
- Kashi Island Vanilla, 250 calories, 6 g of fiber, 2.5 tsp sugar per cup
- Kellogg Unfrosted Mini-Wheats Bite Size, 200 calories, 6 g of fiber, 1 g of sugar per 30 biscuits (59 g)
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