The Benefits of
Cereal

Cereal is one of the healthiest breakfast
choices you can make. Frequent
cereal eaters tend to have
healthier body weights.

A guide to cereal nutrition and health

Providing nourishment is an important mission. The information that follows provides key insights and facts about cereal, its ingredients and the roles they play in contributing to overall health. Select titles from the list below to read more.

Ongoing Research

The more scientists study cereal, the stronger the body of research becomes. Here are some recent findings.

• Lower mean BMI and waist circumference has been observed among children who consume cereal at breakfast compared with children who did not eat cereal or who skipped breakfast.⁴⁹
• Girls who continue to eat cereal regularly – presweetened or not – are less likely to become overweight during adolescence.^5,15
• In boys, cereal consumption is associated with lower BMI and lower total and LDL (“bad”) cholesterol levels.⁵⁰
• Cereal eaters tend to be leaner than those who do not eat cereal, regardless of age, and regardless of whether the cereals consumed are presweetened.^2,5,15
• Among adolescents, greater physical activity has been associated with eating cereal for breakfast.⁵¹
• A fortified breakfast cereal can help to reduce declines in attention and memory over the morning in schoolchildren.¹³
• Overweight children aged 6 to 12 who followed a weight reduction program that included one serving of cereal plus nutrition education significantly lowered body weight and triglycerides while raising HDL (“good”) cholesterol.⁵²
• Children who ate breakfast scored higher on tests. One study found that students who increased their participation in the school breakfast program had significantly greater increases in math grades, decreased school absences and decreases in tardiness.¹¹
• In a nutrient to cost comparison of cereal and other breakfasts among ninth-graders, for every dollar spent, the cereal breakfast provided significantly more folic acid, iron, niacin, vitamins A and D, and zinc than the other two breakfast meals.⁵³

• Cereal & Weight
• What About Sugar?
• Whole Grain
• Cereal and Nutrition
• Packaging Nutrition Highlights
• Lowering Cholesterol with Cheerios
• Ongoing Research

Download the Benefits
of Cereal Brochure