Food Manufacturer Tricks

General Mills, maker of Fiber One junk, also uses their Honey Nut Cheerios line to convince you that food that is good for you tastes awful. Really, truly awful -- or it would except General Mills is there to rescue you.

In their commercials, a parade of adults lament needing to eat whole grains to lower their cholesterol. Honey Nut Cheerios to the rescue.

Ingredients: Whole Grain Oats, Sugar, Oat Bran, Modified Corn Starch, Honey, Brown Sugar Syrup, Salt, Calcium Carbonate, Tripotassium Phosphate, Canola and/or Rice Bran Oil, Zinc and Iron (Mineral Nutrients), Vitamin C (Sodium Ascorbate), a B Vitamin (Niacinamide), Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine Hydrochloride), Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin), Vitamin B1 (Thiamin Mononitrate), Vitamin A (Palmitate), a B Vitamin (Folic Acid), Vitamin B12, Vitamin D, Natural Almond Flavor, Wheat Flour, Vitamin E (Mixed Tocopherols) Added to Preserve Freshness.

They do have whole grains -- oats to be specific. And 9g of sugar and various artificial additives.

You could have oatmeal. It also has, um, oats.  Check out our recipes here and here.  But the whole idea that the whole grains taste bad is ridiculous. Whole wheat bread? Brown rice? Quinoa? Barley? Soba noodles? Don't fall for it.  Check out the handout on grains from the guest speaker we had earlier this year.  Or the Well blog from the Times recently on great recipes with interesting whole grains.  The Whole Grains Council also has recipes - although I suspect they exist to serve the food manufacturer industry with their "whole grain stamp".

But if you're looking for a breakfast cereal in particular, take a look at this checklist by our committee's nutritionist.

I think I'm going to avoid General Mills for awhile. A long while. This isn't right.