It’s often said breakfast is the most important meal of the day — and you can bet the cereal industry agrees. It’s a $37 billion market.
The diversity of options can be overwhelming; there are hundreds. Many sugar-coated and chocolate-covered varieties are marketed toward kids while others target health-conscious adults.
Unfortunately, many breakfast cereals you might think are healthy are also overflowing with added sugar — something federal dietary guidelines say “there is very little leeway” for in a healthy diet.
Following are several cereals which have more sugar in a single serving than a plain doughnut, which the USDA says contains 10.9 total grams of sugar.
Honey Nut Cheerios
Serving size: 1 cup
Total sugar per serving: 12 grams
Added sugar per serving: 12 grams
Added sugar as a percentage of recommended daily value: 24%
Honey Nut Cheerios are a well-known variety of the popular General Mills cereal. Its recognizable bee mascot went unnamed until 2000 when a fifth-grader came up with the name Buzz.
Frosted Flakes
Serving size: 1 cup
Total sugar per serving: 12 grams
Added sugar per serving: 12 grams
Added sugar as a percentage of recommended daily value: 24%
These are, in the words of mascot Tony the Tiger, “gr-r-reat!” The secret is a not-small amount of sugar — which didn’t used to be a secret. From their debut in 1952 until 1983, they were actually called “Sugar Frosted Flakes.”
Frosted Mini Wheats
Serving size: 25 biscuits
Total sugar per serving: 12 grams
Added sugar per serving: 12 grams
Added sugar as a percentage of recommended daily value: 24%
For those who prefer their sugar coating generously applied over shredded wheat, Kellogg’s still has you covered. You can get the exact same amount of sugar in these as the first two cereals on this list, even if the mascot (whose name is Mini, and who has no weaknesses) isn’t nearly as charming.
Raisin Bran Crunch
Serving size: 1 cup
Total sugar per serving: 19 grams
Added sugar per serving: 13 grams
Added sugar as a percentage of recommended daily value: 26%
Raisin Bran Crunch has the highest total sugar on this list, but some of that is attributable to the natural sugar in raisins. While fruits are generally high in sugar, they are a much healthier source that comes paired with fiber and other valuable nutrients in the cereal, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
Added sugars, meanwhile, basically just make things taste better. And at 13 grams, this cereal has plenty of those too.
Sweet Dreams Blueberry Midnight
Serving size: 1 cup
Total sugar per serving: 16 grams
Added sugar per serving: 13 grams
Added sugar as a percentage of recommended daily value: 27%
If you somehow didn’t hit your limit on added sugars for the day, a small bowl of this recently launched Post cereal will be happy to take care of more than a quarter of that — right before bed.
It’s “specially designed to support a good sleep routine and a fresh start to the next day,” Post says, formulated with a “nighttime herbal blend of lavender and chamomile,” then fortified with vitamins — and more than one spoonful of sugar.
Sweet Dreams Honey Moonglow Cereal
Serving size: 1 cup
Total sugar per serving: 13 grams
Added sugar per serving: 12 grams
Added sugar as a percentage of recommended daily value: 24%
Take away the natural fruit sugars of the Blueberry Midnight variety of this new Post cereal and add a bit of honey and vanilla. Then, you end up with “only” 13 grams of sugar in this variety, which is supposed to “support natural melatonin production.”