By: Mary Fran Bontempo

I know I’m supposed to eat healthy.

Fruits, yogurt, granola, whole grains, etc. etc. But the truth is, sometimes eating healthy is hard. And inconvenient. And life is hard and inconvenient enough. That’s why, for breakfast, at least (okay, and sometimes an occasional dinner when no one else is home), my go-to food has always been a bowl of cereal covered in ice cold milk. It’s can’t miss comfort, speed, convenience–just the thing for a busy morning. (Plus, Jerry Seinfeld always loved cereal, so it has to be good, right?)

But in the past, I confess to opting for cereals endorsed by leprechauns and rabbits, not the healthiest of options. Plus, given that most “healthy” cereal choices for including fiber and good stuff in my morning breakfast tasted like a mix of sawdust and twigs, I stuck with cartoon characters.

So when the folks at Kellogg’s asked us to try their new FiberPlus line of cereals, we here at NRFGP figured we’d give it a go. We also figured that if we didn’t like what we tasted, you’d never hear about it. (If we do a product review, we like the product. If it’s not something we’d use ourselves, we won’t even present it to you.) The cereals were sent to my home and I poured myself several bowls over a few days. And (Hey Mikey!) I liked them.

Cinnamon Oat Crunch, reminiscent of Cheerios, but a lot lighter and tastier, includes 35% of the daily dietary fiber recommendation along with 16g of whole grains. In addition, the cereal contains 100% of the recommended dose of Vitamin E and is fortified with antioxidants, iron and a host of other vitamins. A one cup serving with ½ cup of skim milk equals a healthy 150 calories.

The second option I received, Berry Yogurt Crunch, contains 40% of the recommended daily dose of fiber as well as 25g of whole grains, along with an assortment of antioxidants. This cereal is a bit higher in the calorie content, with 210 calories for a one cup serving with ½ cup of skim milk.

Incorporating fiber into your diet (http://www.essortment.com/getting-rda-dietary-fiber-important-health-26576.html) is essential to good health and can aid in preventing heart attacks and cancer. The benefit of eating foods rich in antioxidants has also been well documented. (http://www.naturalnews.com/031862_antioxidants_longevity.html). Of course, the best ways to incorporate fiber and antioxidants is by eating  multiple servings of fruits and veggies daily. I don’t do it. Do you?

(It is important to note that both cereals enhance their taste with sugar. However, when I compared the new cereals with another healthy option in my cabinet, the Cinnamon Oat Crunch contained 7g of sugar to the “health” cereal’s 6g.)

The truth is that as we age, we need to be extra careful about what we eat. Anything that makes it easy to eat well and enjoy it (which, let’s face, is sometimes a crap shoot with a healthy diet) is something to consider. If you’re a cereal eater, you may want to check out the new Kellogg’s line of FiberPlus cereals. Tasty, convenient, low in fat and high in fiber and antioxidants. A healthy breakfast—check.

DISCLOSURE STATEMENT
This is a paid post sponsored by the Kellogg’s Corporation. I received two boxes of cereal to sample and was asked to review the product. My opinion is honest and all words are mine alone, but this is simply my opinion. We at NRFGP will not present products or information to you which we would not use ourselves. Thank you.