BANSHEE WAILS: Kellogg's Cereals is TICKING OFF The Princess!!!

I was browsing the offerings on a grocery promotion at amazon.com, since I was ready to stock up on cereal. I want to add a bit more fiber to my breakfast/snacks.

So, they offer things like the sugary cereals kids love (and plenty of adults)--Frosted Flakes, Sugar Smacks, Apple Jacks, etc--which I skipped and went to one of my faves: Cheerios. Three grams of fiber for 120 calories and while sugar is in the ingredients, it's not in the top three--

Ingredients: Whole grain oat, modified corn starch, corn starch, sugar, salt, trisodium phosphate, calcium carbonate, monoglycerides, tocopherols, wheat starch, annatto, vitamins & minerals: niacinamide, calcium pantothenate, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin b6), folate, iron.

It's certainly not for low-carbers, but it's one of those "from my youth" treats. Only as an adult, I sprinkle Splenda on top, or fruit, or both, and NOT tons of sugar.

I shopping carted that and went on to look for something to add more wheat bran. I looked at All Bran Buds after seeing it on another fatfighting blog as a nice additive for Cheerios, and then Raisin Bran, which I used to eat a lot of as a twenty-something.

When I looked at the nutritional info, I, the Princess, wailed along with the ticked off Blue Banshee of Health-Seeking Blogdom:

All Bran Buds, Ingredients:
Wheat Bran, SUGAR, Psyllium Seed Husk, Oat Fiber, HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP, Salt, Baking Soda, Caramel Color, Sodium Ascorbate And Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C), Niacinamide, Reduced Iron, Zinc Oxide, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B6) Riboflavin (Vitamin B1), Vitamin A Palmitate, Vitamin B12, Vitamin D, BHT (preservative), Annatto Color.

Raisin Bran, Ingredients:
Whole Wheat, Raisins, Wheat Bran, SUGAR, HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP, salt, malt flavoring,
Vitamins and Minerals: niacinamide, reduced iron, zinc oxide, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride(VITAMIN B6), RIBOFLAVIN (Vitamin B2), thiamin hydrochloride (Vitamin B1), Vitamin A Palmitate, folic acid, Vitamin B12 and Vitamin D.

You know, with all the info on how very bad high fructose corn syrup is for us, especially those of us with belly fat/Metabolic Syndrome/diabetes/insulin resitance, there's no damn reason to use it. Dr. Mehmet Oz lists it as one of the top five foods to AVOID for better health.

Why can't they sweeten with Splenda and offer sugar-free options and call it their dieter's version? Why not use honey, even. Why something as denounced and derided as HFCS?

And how can they add sugar as the SECOND ingredient in a grown-up cereal. (All Bran). And with HFCS as the fifth ingredient, adding both may mean that some form of SUGAR is really the FIRST, the most prominent, ingredient in the mix. Are you peeved yet with me?

And the Raisin Bran (also aimed at adults, one would assume), has the double whammy of sugar AND HFCS in the fourth and fifth slots--and that means that "sugar" in some form is probably a main ingredient (maybe 2nd, rather than bran.)

I better stop before my ears emit steam.

With my ginormous appetite, I don't need HFCS to increase my appetite!

And, to be honest, I'd rather add the sweetness level I want with my own choice of sweetener (Splenda, Stevia, Honey, Sugar, etc).

How hard would it be for them to just make adult versions, REAL adult versions, of these popular cereals--you know, just make them with wholesome ingredients and vitamins and minerals and let us figure out how to sweeten (or not) to taste? We're not idiots.

Besides, what household do you know without some form of food sweetness enhancer. (In mine, I have various honeys, Splenda in assorted forms, sugar (for hubby's lemonade, which I cut with Splenda), Equal (from an old batch), Sweet-n-Low (from an old box), confectioner's and brown sugar (for when hubby bakes ginger cookies.)) Except for someone who is a real no-sweet eater, we all have something to sweeten tea or coffee or lemonade or cereal or hot cocoa or whatever.

So, why can't they give us a choice?

(I hear they're making sugar-reduced kid's cereals. I think they need to re-evaluate their adult offerings.)

Bottom line: Adding HFCS makes what would be healthy into, frankly, JUNK FOOD! Diet-hazard food. Heart-hurting food.

Adding both sugar and HFCS is, well, cheapskate food production--and with cereal prices per box what they currently are for a tiny amount of cereal, they can afford to use better ingredients or leave out bad ones. These recipes are not healthful, no matter how many vitamins and minerals and dropped into the mix.

Grrrrrr.

Okay, so I'll compromise for now and get the Cheerios with the lower sugar and without the HCFS, and I'll just not eat it every day. But I'm boycotting all HCFS-containing Kellogg's, General Mills, etc cereals.

Badly done, you corporations. Badly done.

(I'm channeling Jeremy Northam as the hunky Mr. Knightley, did you notice? Austen rules!)

So, have you read your nutritional labels lately? Are you getting label-shock yet?

::::Wail::::

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