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We’ve all heard it before, “Breakfast is the most important meal of the day!” And of course, one of the most common breakfast options is cereal. Unfortunately, most cereal options are just processed junk food with refined sugar and artificial flavors. That combination is actually the WORST way you can start your day!
Fun fact: The phrase “Breakfast is the most important meal of the day!” was coined by Dr. John Harvey Kellogg, the founder of Kellogg. I think he may have been incentivized to encourage people to have breakfast 😉.
But don’t worry, not all cereal is bad. In fact, there are 3 simple rules you can follow to ensure you’re buying the best option for you and your family:
- Rule 1: Look for organic, or even better, glyphosate free. Most cereals come from wheat, corn, and soy. These are three of the most heavily sprayed crops.
- Rule 2: Look for natural sweeteners like maple syrup and coconut sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup.
- Rule 3: Look for healthy fats like coconut or avocado oil instead of vegetable oils.
One misconception I want to hit on is that a lot of people looking for a healthy cereal option look for cereal that has no sugar. What’s WAY more important is the type of sugar in the cereal. If you’re looking at two types of cereal and one has 7g of sugar from maple syrup and another has 6g of sugar from high fructose corn syrup, I’m choosing the one with the maple syrup 100 times out of 100 even though it has more sugar. Ingredients are more important than the nutrition label!
Let’s continue down this path with some more examples! Below are my 4 FAVORITE healthy cereals:
Table of Contents
The Healthiest Cereal Options
1. Seven Sundays
We’re starting off strong with my absolute favorite cereal. It’s funny, I almost view Seven Sundays more as a dessert or a midday snack than a breakfast. They have A TON of flavors to choose from but my personal favorite is the Maple Sea Salt! From an ingredients perspective, it doesn’t get much better. They’re gluten free, glyphosate free and use natural sweeteners like dates, maple syrup and coconut sugar. They have a grain free sunflower protein cereal and an oat protein cereal.
Ingredients of my favorite flavor: Maple Sea Salt Sunflower Protein Cereal
2. Purely Elizabeth
Purely Elizabeth is more known for it’s granola than it’s cereal, but it’s cereal is one of the best! They’re still relatively new to the cereal game so they only have four flavors as of now, but I expect to see that list grow. Like Seven Sundays, Purely Elizabeth is gluten free! They do use oats in all of their cereals in case you’re trying to stay away from grains. Fortunately, they are organic oats which we love to see. I’d love to see them go one step further and test for glyphosate to ensure their is no indirect exposure from nearby crops. We did a podcast episode on the dangers of glyphosate in case you’re curious, I highly recommend checking it out! Lastly, Purely Elizabeth uses natural sweeteners like maple syrup and coconut sugar along with coconut oil for some healthy fats.
3. LoveBird
LoveBird might be a new name for many of you but it’s quickly becoming one of my favorite options. If you go to their website, you’ll see a whole section devoted to learning about the importance of eating real food. There’s one alarming statistic on the page that says, “67% of the average child’s diet is junk food and 1 in 2 children have a chronic health condition”. Think about that! 50% of children have a chronic health condition! LoveBird is one of the ‘good guys’ working to bring that number down. The ingredients in LoveBird check ALL of the boxes: grain free, gluten free, organic AND glyphosate free, and they use REAL sweeteners. Check them out here if you haven’t already!
Ingredients of Lovebird Cinamon Flavor Cereal
4. Ezekiel
Like Purely Elizabeth, you may know Ezekiel for another one of their products, their bread! But they also have cereal options with real ingredients! If you look at their ingredient list, you’ll see “sprouted” grains.
In case you haven’t seen this before, I wanted to provide some helpful background. When grains start to sprout, they turn into little plants, and this makes them softer and easier to eat. Sprouting also wakes up all the good stuff inside the grains, like vitamins and minerals, making them more available for your body to use. Plus, sprouted grains are easier to digest, which means your stomach can break them down more easily, so you’re less likely to feel bloated or uncomfortable after eating. If you’re going to consume grains, I recommend going the sprouted route!
How to Choose the Right Cereal For You
Well that was a lot of information, and my goal is to make your life easier, not harder! So I consolidated everything above into a nice and easy to read chart! Plus, I also added in three more cereals that I’ll classify as “honorable mentions”. These three cereals are: (1) Thrive Market – Organic Coconut Flakes Cereal*, (2) One Degree Organic Foods – Sprouted Brown Rice Crisps, and (3) Three Wishes Cereal.
The ingredients in all of these are fantastic, but they’re not really a standalone cereal. They need other ingredients like berries, raw honey, or yogurt in order to be a tasty breakfast/snack which is why I didn’t include them in the list above.
Save this chart for the next time you go to the grocery store!
By using this guide you’ll be able to enjoy a delicious breakfast while also protecting your body from harmful chemicals!
* If you want to join Thrive Market and get 30% off your first order + a free gift worth up to $60, you can sign up here!
Good to know thx u
Of course!
Where can u buy these cereals-r any of these available at Aldi?
They’re all available online! If you click on any of the titles, it will take you right to the Amazon page!
I have not yet tried these, but they’re on my list now. Thanks!!
Let me know what you think when you try them out!
Thank you so much! You honestly have educated me on things I didn’t know. I’ve changed what’s in my pantry and my fridge because of you. Thank you!!!
That makes me incredibly happy! I’m so glad to hear that!