Breakfast cereal... How many kids on MN are eating these every day?

[00100001]

Just curious about how prevalent breakfast cereals are for breakfast.

I'm thinking cornflakes, shreddies, shredded where, rice crispies, Coco pops, granolas, crunchy nuts etc

We never really have them, because we got into the habit of having eggs or porridge for breakfast, and then having things like Coco Pops/Frosties as a snack every so often. We'd buy one of the more "interesting" cereals and have that.

Anyway, what happens with cereal in your house?

This pondering came after reading how Kellogg want to sue the government over their proposed ban on prominent placement of sugar cereals.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-61238630

@pattish to be honest no, but i never give them a bowl of cheerios. I put a small amount on the tray if my toddler is going bonkers and I'm trying to get dinner ready.

Both DC have cereal most weekdays. It's quick and easy, and we dont gave much time. We currently have weetabix cornflakes, rice crispie shreddies and cookie crisp which they had as a "treat" and aren't actually eating. They occasionally have toast, and also porridge. Pancakes on Saturdays.

We have 'boring' cereals - Weetabix, Bran Flakes, All Bran, Shredded Wheat, porridge.

I toast seeds and almonds and keep them in jars with the cereals to liven them up a bit. Also add fresh fruit/dried apricots.

I love chocolate cereal. DD has cereal, no milk, plus juice and toast.
We often have porridge at weekends.
Lots of teens skip breakfast. I think what she has is fine. She's slim and active.

Me, do and 2 kids have cereal each day, and sometimes porridge in winter when it's cold. Most days it's Weetabix or bran flakes but sometimes Cheerios (yeah, I know. They have sugar)

We are all normal weight and generally healthy eaters, so I have no plans to change.

One of mine has these cereals every single day - and I'm so happy he does as he barely eats (very restricted diet) and even if it's full of sugar he is at least eating a bowl full of food (sometimes with added vitamins etc).
If I provided something else like porridge or toast he just won't eat. So fed is best!

DC’s (aged 2y 9m) have a choice each day of
Cheerios
’chocolate Cheerios’ (Weeto’s)
Mini weetabix
porridge
malted wheats
toast & butter (no other toppings)

If we have them available we offer crumpets or bagels but that’s not often. The only source of protein in the mornings will be from the milk on their cereal. No inclination to introduce things such as eggs or other cooked food

I grew up having cereal for breakfast but come to think of it I don't know anyone who eats it now. My daughter doesn't eat before school and on weekends has toast if anything. My son makes this awful oats with egg white and protein powder. I have an egg, tomatoes and smoked salmon. A friend makes her kids pancakes every morning. Another they have boiled eggs and toast and so on.

Mine is nearly 2. She's had rice krispies and cornflakes maybe two or three times ever, DH sometimes buys them for himself and I've given her them for a change but I haven't yet made them a regular part of the menu.

She mostly has porridge, eggs or Greek yoghurt with fruit and nut butter, once or twice a week weetabix. She used to quite like shredded wheat bite size but they've since been deemed unacceptable.

Crunchy nuts are my favourite but they're a rare treat otherwise DH and I would do a box in over one weekend.

I used to eat that stuff every day as a child. I eat granola for breakfast now, or weetabix.

DS1 doesn't eat breakfast, but will eat cereal like that as a snack most days.
DS2 eats museli most days for breakfast.
DS3 is too little really but has a banana for breakfast with some crappy unsweetened "baby cereal" but I probably won't replace that when he finishes the pack.

I probably do eat too much sugar but it's habit isn't it?

What else can I have for breakfast that is appealing, shelf stable, and takes no prep or cooking? I can't be arsed with anything else in the morning. I used to eat yoghurt and fruit but that combination is sugar as well so it can't be much better.

As kids, we put sugar on our cornflakes etc.

Coco pops 69g/100g carbs

shredded wheat 66g/100g carbs

sod all in it!

if you read just the 'sugar' there's a difference in the packet, but none to your body!

@BertieBotts

But at least you get the fibre from the fruit and protein from the yogurt if it’s full fat. You could add some almonds and flaxseed too. Super quick.

We really have to get away from processed carbs and sugar for breakfast.

DS2 has 3 Weetabix every morning with whole milk. Often with toast too. He'll have fruit too if I insist😅. He's 15, 6 foot 1 and a bean pole, so I'm not worried about him!

Cheerios are sometimes an after school treat for DS3 dry in a bowl!

DS had CMPA when he was younger and the number of people who said 'but what does he have for breakfast if he can't have cereal?' Em, toast and jam?

Anyway, two of my DC don't have cereal, the third has cornflakes sometimes. There are lots of better options.

@Hospedia
i just had a look. Tesco has something called Monster Puffs, which look like sugar puffs to me?!

Dd generally has toast. Dd has cheerios, weetabix, or those cinnamon pocket things.

@HotDogKetchup

You're kidding yourself if you think your options are any more than a teeny tiny bit better. Look at the grams of carbs per 100g there's a barely noticeable difference.

For everyone saying that they/their DC are slim so it’s ok, it’s not just about obesity. It’s about creating blood sugar imbalance which can cause all sorts of health issues later on, increasing inflammation and all the problems that (long term) go with that. Short term is impairs concentration, increases fatigue, causes oxidative stress… the list goes on.

I find it so depressing how successful the marketing of things like Cheerios to parents is - people literally have no idea they are feeding their kids shit.

Spending £9 on 2kg of cereal is one of the reasons we got into porridge... It is 75p a kg for porridge oats.
We had to make choices when DS was younger. And it kind of just stuck.

We do dippy eggs most mornings. Cereal when I'm having a lazy day (maybe once a week) but then I find they're hungry an hour later! We do weetabix before bed.

Porridge, Weetabix or eggs are the main breakfast foods here, we do have a box of the shreddies natural (no sugar) and DS can have those one day at the weekend if he wants, sometimes he does but he's more likely to ask for poached eggs or banana pancakes when I've got more time in the morning.

@00100001 Porridge was one of the first breakfast foods DS has and he still chooses it first most mornings, usually with some fruit , it is habit and not a bad one

pattish
Due to my allergies we don't have a lot of nuts in the house.
HCA commented to me when DD was small that any breakfast better than none. She's a teen now and is one of the few of her peers who eats breakfast and lunch.. there's a lot of disordered eating still in teenagers. I get what you are saying and good habits from young is important but I don't think we should demonise food and some mornings of 'bad' cereal is not necessarily terrible.