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

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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

My kids are teenagers and we still stick to sugary cereals as a holiday treat, porridge or weetabix for everyday .

Personally, I could pretty much live on Crunchy Nut cornflakes but only buy them once or twice a year because they’re like crack to me. So good.

Yes, most days for the children as they can make it themselves.

However I am aware that cereals are absolute shit and I’d prefer they didn’t have them, but the alternative is me getting up half an hour earlier to prepare them eggs and vegetables. Bread is just as bad.

i try to stick to weetabix and porridge for that reason but I do allow rice pops and shreddies fairly regularly too. My eldest likes granola with green yoghurt, I am happy for them to have that as I buy one full of seeds and oats with a little fruit so it’s not a major sugar hit, especially with the full fat Greek yoghurt.

HCA commented to me when DD was small that any breakfast better than none.

Sorry, but this is really bad advice. Fasting isn’t bad for the body. High-sugar processed foods first thing in the morning most definitely is.

I agree with you about disordered eating though.

My lot eat endless rounds of toast instead of cereal during the week. Weekends are eggs (on toast) or sugary shite (at their dad's).

However I am aware that cereals are absolute shit and I’d prefer they didn’t have them, but the alternative is me getting up half an hour earlier to prepare them eggs and vegetables. Bread is just as bad.

You wouldn’t get up half an hour earlier for your kids’ health?

An omelette takes about 90 seconds to make.

Of 6 of us, only DH routinely has breakfast cereals. Never sugary ones.
Rest of us prefer something else.
All of us used to eat cereal at one point.
I used to sometimes buy coco-pops or lucky charms for birthdays or Xmas, is only time we had sugary sort in house.

Ds1 rarely has cereal (weetabix) - mostly eggs, porridge, toast
Ds2 is a cereal fiend and has it most days but we don't buy sugary cereal so it will be cornflakes, shreddies, fruit and fibre etc. We've stopped buying Rice Krispies as he was eating them every day but they're not remotely filling or nutritious. I'm not sure how much better the rest are really.

We have a variety of the less crap ones, and put some honey or fruit on to cheer it up a bit

Weetabix
Shreddies
Cheerios
Cornflakes
Shredded wheat
Ready brek

I don't mind coco pops or krave or something chocolatey sometimes but try and stick to the ones above that aren't as sugary.

We either have cereal, toast, eggs, or sometimes waffles and honey.

Toast and Nutella, crumpets, marmite rice cakes and a "chewy sweet" (vitamin gummy thing) is DS breakfast most days - pain au chocolat at the weekend).

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

It's not shit, it's just food.

Cereal (and any other food) as part of a balanced diet is perfectly fine for breakfast. A bowl of cereal with milk can contribute to a child's fibre and vitamin needs for the day. For example two Weetabix with milk is a low sugar, low fat, wholeheain cereal which would give a child 3.8g of fibre, 26g of carbs (which kids need for growth), 4.5g of protein, and over 80% of their RDA of B vitamins, iron, and folic acid as well calcium and vitamin A from the milk. Add a sliced banana or a handful of blueberries and it'll push the vitamin content even higher.

Hardly shit.

That's nice.

I wouldn't want to eat eggs first thing in the morning or get up half an hour earlier because my sleep is important too.

You enjoy martyrdom, we'll be over here enjoying our Weetabix.

It is not really bad advice and any breakfast is better than no breakfast especially for children who should not be routinely fasting. Unless you're a qualified healthcare professional who has had sight of PP's child's records then you're in no position to advise that "this is really bad advice".

I love your parting pun!!

No DC but we almost never eat cereal here. We have porridge and muesli in, but it takes months/years to get through a pack.

At one point DP had a bit of a tradition of buying a box of Coco Pops if we went on a SC holiday, but apart from that, it's the worst possible breakfast food. So insubstantial and sugary. It's like eating a bowl of sweet air that leaves you more hungry an hour later. Just about all cereal even 'plain' ones like bran flakes, rice crispies have quite a bit of added sugar, sweeter ones maybe a quarter to a third sugar , so obviously they fall within the rules on not advertising sugary foods, why wouldn't they.

But I don't understand how people say they have cereal due to cost or time of other options like eggs.

Cereal always seems really expensive to me and remember that almost no-one will be having the tiny recommended 30 g portion so the cost is probably comparable to something more substantial like a couple of eggs and a slice of toast.

It's not even a time thing either, no-one says toast 'takes too long' and you can make an omelette or do poached/soft boiled eggs in less than the time it takes for the toast to be ready. Or if I don't want to eat first thing, I'll make an egg mayonnaise sandwich the night before to take with me and eat later.

Pattish you seem to be very passionate and know a lot of information about this, can I ask what your background is/where you learned about it?

But it's the milk that's giving the majority of the nutrients here.

This is what Kellogg is arguing. Whilst they have high sugar cereals, they're saying that the majority of the time it served with milk which makes it a less crap "meal" over all, so should be excluded from high sugar rules.

Government (quite rightly) are saying that any food manufacturer could then argue their product isn't as bad. IE. Coca cola could say, most people have their cola with a meal, so it isn't so bad after all

Cereal is hugely expensive here in Germany.

Not wanting to prepare stuff is generally because I feel absolutely shit in the mornings, sick, fuzzy headed, low concentration and I'm supervising one or two children under 4 who are demanding nappy changes, food and so on. I just need to sit down with a coffee and wake up a bit first.

Also I don't want to create loads of mess that I won't bother to clean up at the time and will have to clean up later.

What is simple or easy for one person isn't simple or easy for everybody.

And no I'm not ill/deficient in something but I do have ADHD and it's quite common apparently. Mostly though I think I'm just a night owl. Not everyone is with it in the morning.

DT’s are big cereal fans - usually a choice between cheerio’s, Frosties, crunchy nut cornflakes or coco pops. We got through loads of cereal with gallons of milk. It’s not their only food so no problem as part of a balanced diet - quick and easy

Kids aged 6 and nearly 5 have cereal Monday- Friday with two yoghurts for breakfast. On the weekend they tend to have pancakes, crumpets, porridge or an omelette or fritatta. They eat lunch at school then home for dinner and I have no issues with the cereal as one is on the 50th centile for weight and the other 75th. I think it's all about balance.

I’m not a nutritionist but I work alongside this field so know a lot about it.

And while I agree that children shouldn’t be routinely fasting, no, sorry, it’s not true that any breakfast is better than none. Would a Crunchie and a can of coke be better than nothing? Absolutely not.

At the end of the day, if people choose to give their children poor nutrition because it takes too long/is yucky/they can’t be bothered to make them something healthy, it is up to them.

What makes me angry is that due to marketing and out of date health information from the government many people think foods like cereal are healthy. It’s the misinformation that makes me cross.

Dd2 has porridge or egg and toast for breakfast and a glass of milk before bed.

Dd1 has corn flakes for breakfast and alternates between toast and peanut butter or coco pops for supper

Cereal always seems really expensive to me and remember that almost no-one will be having the tiny recommended 30 g portion so the cost is probably comparable to something more substantial like a couple of eggs and a slice of toast.
I agree, when DS was little our food budget was very strict. Porridge is very cheap and cooks quickly if you put the oats and milk in the pan the night before. You can get decent bread discounted and put it in the freezer for toast. Porridge, or egg on toast is a proper breakfast. Cereal is just not worth the money in my opinion.

Cereal always seems really expensive

Not true, I think, or rather, depends on the cereal chosen.
Wheetabix box 24, is 540 grams
£2.20 for the box in Waitrose
362 kcal for 100 grams
£2.20 for 1955 kcal
11.2 pence for 100 calories, I think.
That has to be considered cheap!!

TBF, I was thinking about cereals like Rice Crispies, but if you want two dry Weetabix for your breakfast, then I suppose it is cheap and people are more likely to stick to the recommended portion size.

For something more typical, a 510 g box of rice crispies in Tesco is £2.90 and, as I said before, the recommended 30 g portion size is tiny so, apart from toddlers, most people will have more, so if you conservatively say there's 10 x 51 g portions in a box, that's 29 p per portion, plus the milk, if you buy a standard 4 pint carton and have a third of a pint of milk, that's about 10 p for milk, so around 40 p for your breakfast.

We buy 15 free range eggs for £2 from M&S usually, who also sell a normal sliced loaf for about 60 p. So 2 eggs is 26 p, add on 5 p for a slice of toast and a few pence for a bit of butter, so your 2 eggs and a slice of buttered toast is around 35 p, so exactly the same as rice crispies once you've allowed for cooking it and a lot more tasty/substantial and probably healthier.

No one in my house eats cereal so I never buy it. Dd1 is never hungry in the morning so just has a banana, dd2 eats either hummus and breadsticks or those apple rice cakes aimed at weaning babies and usually whatever soft fruit we have in - she goes to breakfast club but doesn't eat there as they only offer cereal or toast and she doesn't eat either. I don't have time for breakfast and grab a slice of toast once I get to work. Strangle though when we go camping with friends we buy the little variety packs and they eat them then. 🤷🏼‍♀️