Cheerios Nutrition Facts: Learn the Health Benefits and Nutritional Content of General Mills' Cheerios Breakfast Cereal
Cheerios’ Top Health Claim: Lowering Cholesterol
General Mills positively crows about its oat cereal’s research-demonstrated health benefit of lowering cholesterol. That’s because direct links between specific branded products and quantifiable health benefits are so rarely found. But do Cheerios’ nutrition facts show it to be effective at lowering cholesterol?
Studies have shown that intake of 3g or more of soluble fiber daily, along with a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, results in a substantial reduction in blood cholesterol levels. Lower amounts of soluble fiber don’t deliver the same protective effect, which means if you plan to eat soluble fiber in order to reduce cholesterol, you want to get 3g or more daily.
Oat bran is a good source of soluble fiber, and Cheerios advertises that it will reduce cholesterol. However, each serving of Cheerios contains 1g of soluble fiber, so one would have to eat three bowls of Cheerios cereal in order to obtain the beneficial cholesterol-reducing effects. This makes eating Cheerios a somewhat impractical method of getting 3g of soluble fiber daily, save for those who really, really like the cereal.
Cheerios is Still an Excellent Source of Nutrition
Don’t be deterred by the news that Cheerios isn’t the perfect cholesterol-reducing medicine. It still has wholesome ingredients, low calories, and is fortified with an impressive array of vitamins and minerals.
Calories
The original Cheerios, which remains General Mills’ most popular Cheerios variety, has 100 calories in a 1-cup (28g) serving. All nutrition information detailed here is for the cereal alone, without milk added.
Fat
A low-fat food, Cheerios contains 2g of fat, including 0.5g polyunsaturated fat and 0.5g monounsaturated fat. Cheerios contains small amounts of fat because it’s made with whole grain oats, which includes the bran and germ of the oat. As a seed, these parts of the oat contain fat to power growth and sprouting if planted.
Carbs
A serving of Cheerios has 20g of carbs. Sugars make up 1g of carbs per serving.
Fiber
Cheerios is a good source of fiber, containing 3g of dietary fiber per serving, with 1g of that being soluble fiber.
Protein
Cheerios contains small amounts of protein, 3g per serving.
Vitamins
One serving of Cheerios provides 10 percent of the U.S. recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for vitamin A, vitamin C, and vitamin D; 25 percent RDA for thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, viatmin B6, and vitamin B12; and 50 percent of the RDA for folic acid.
Minerals
Cheerios is fortified with 10 percent of the RDA for calcium, phosphorus, and magnesium; 25 percent of the RDA for zinc; and 45 percent of the RDA for iron, making it an excellent source for iron.
These Cheerios nutrition facts demonstrate that the whole-grain cereal provides a good deal of nutrition in the form of vitamins, minerals, and fiber, while remaining low in fat and sugar and free of artificial colors or flavors. Though not as good as eating a less-processed food, such as oatmeal, Cheerios for breakfast isn’t a bad choice.
References
Can Cheerios Really Save Your Life? https://healthpsych.psy.vanderbilt.edu/2008/Cheerios.htm
Cheerios: https://www.cheerios.com/ourCereals/Cheerios/Cheerios_home.aspx