Is Life Cereal Bad For You?
Short answer
There are worse things to eat for breakfast, but Life Cereal likely isn't as healthy as you may have been lead to believe.
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Harmful to your health. Although benefits may be associated, the bad most likely outweighs the good. Moderation is very important.
View Full Grading System
Category 'A'
Very healthy and numerous health benefits. Side effects are rare. Things rated an 'A+' are typically necessary for survival (for example, water).
Very healthy and numerous health benefits. A few harmful qualities may be associated, but only under certain circumstances such as an allergic reaction.
Very healthy and numerous health benefits. Harmful qualities may be associated, but aren't usually serious.
It is important to note that even the best things in life can become bad in immoderate amounts. So, although something may be rated an 'A+', overconsumption/overdoing can bring unwanted effects.
Category 'B'
Very beneficial to your health. Things rated a 'B+' may have a few harmful qualities to pay attention to.
Overall beneficial to your health. Things rated a 'B' may have some harmful qualities to pay attention to.
More beneficial to your health than not. However, harmful qualities are most likely associated and shouldn't be overlooked.
The main difference between category 'A' and category 'B' is the harmful qualities typically present in 'B' items. Serious side effects are usually uncommon, but are still possible and should be taken note of.
Category 'C'
Both beneficial and harmful qualities associated. Things rated a 'C+' are typically a bit more on the beneficial side. Still, moderation is important.
A fairly even ratio of beneficial and harmful qualities. Moderation is important. Very general topics that can lean towards both sides of the spectrum will be placed here as well. Rice, for example, can be good or bad depending on the type.
More harmful than beneficial. Side effects are common, especially when consumed/done excessively. Moderation is very important.
Category 'C' usually denotes to both good and bad qualities. When it comes to this category, it is important to keep this word in mind: moderation.
Category 'D'
Harmful to your health. Although benefits may be associated, the bad most likely outweighs the good. Moderation is very important.
Harmful to your health. A few benefits may be associated, but the bad outweighs the good. Moderation is extremely important.
Harmful to your health. Very few, if any, benefits are present. Things in this category should be avoided as much as possible.
Category 'D' is typically for things that are more harmful than beneficial. While consuming/doing something unhealthy once in a blue moon shouldn't hurt, we definitely recommend eliminating 'D' items as a regular part of your routine/diet.
Category 'F'
Category 'F' is for things that fail to bring anything beneficial to the table, and are very harmful to your health. We recommend completely avoiding anything in this category. Long-term side effects of 'F' items are usually very serious.
Category 'N'
'N' stands for neutral. Things placed into this category are generally (a) neither good nor bad for you, or (b) lack the necessary evidence to reach any conclusions.
Long answer
Life Cereal isn't terrible as far as cereals go. It'll get you on the road to your daily recommended allowance of minerals like zinc, magnesium and calcium - most sitting somewhere between 5 and 25 percent. There's quite a bit of iron in life cereal, as well - it's the cereal's mineral standout, providing 45% of your recommended daily value. If you struggle with anemia - especially if you don't eat meat and are looking for more iron in a vegetarian diet - Life Cereal can help you to make inroads towards increasing the amount of iron in your diet.
There's a fair number of B vitamins in Life Cereal as well. You need these nutrients for healthy skin, hair, and eyes. They come with frightening latinate names, however - don't be put off when you see niacin, riboflavin, pyridoxine hydrochloride, or thiamine mononitrate on the side of the box.
Life cereal has six grams of added sugar, which is well below the maximum 13 grams recommended by the Mayo Clinic. Although it's made with whole grain oats and wheat flour, there's not much fiber to speak of - only about 2 grams per serving. A bowl of plain oatmeal - although not fortified with vitamins as Life is - will provide you with more dietary fiber.
Worrying, Life Cereal is colored with Yellow 5 and Yellow 6. These artificial colors are controversial and have been linked to hyperactivity, developmental problems, thyroid disorders, and increased cancer risk. The evidence is mixed, and the FDA still allows for their use - nonetheless, companies like Nestle have bowed to increasing public pressure and pledged to phase out the use of artificial colors in their products. PepsiCo owns Quaker Oats, the manufacturer of Life Cereal; although they've moved to take certain artificial sweeteners out of Diet Pepsi, they've so far stayed mum about artificial colors in cereal.
Life Cereal also contains a preservative - BHT, which helps to keep different oils and fats from going rancid. It's generally regarded as safe by the FDA, but the national institute of health says that it's "reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen." The evidence here is also mixed - BHT has been shown to cause forestomach cancer in rats in doses much larger than it's found in cereals. There's not evidence as of yet that BHT is carcinogenic in people - indeed, we don't have forestomachs or rodent metabolisms - but consumer advocacy groups such as the Environmental Working Group have successfully campaigned for companies like General Mills to remove it from their foods. So far, Quaker Oats has not done the same.
Possible short-term side effects
- blood sugar spike
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hyperactivity
Possible long-term side effects
- developmental problems
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thyroid disorders
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diabetes
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cancer
Ingredients to be aware of
Benefits
- good source of:
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zinc
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iron
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magnesium
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calcium
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b vitamins
Our Wellness Pick
(what is this?)
Organic Morning Os Cereal
- USDA Organic Certified
- Non-GMO Project Verified
- No artificial flavors
- Whole grain goodness
Learn More!
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