There’s Nothing “Smart” About Froot Loops
Learn more at The Nourished Kitchen
Dear Doctors Kennedy, Kahn, Hager, and Bier,
I am writing to express my outrage that you are supporting the “Smart Choices” program. Any certification program that calls Froot Loops a “Smart Choice” doesn’t deserve your support. Our children are already eating too much sugar and suggesting that parents should consider Fruit Loops and other unhealthy foods packed with sugar a good choice is irresponsible given the dangerous and costly rise in childhood obesity we currently face.
Fruit Loops is 41% sugar.
You should know better, as doctors and as public health leaders, than to promote eating sugary cereals for breakfast. I am appalled that any university or nonprofit organization that supports healthy eating would want to be associated with an industry-backed promotional gimmick suggesting that Fruit Loops and other clearly unhealthy foods are a good choice for children.
This is, simply put, unacceptable. I urge you to resign from the board of the Smart Choices program. Until you do, you not only cast doubt upon your own objectivity, but also on the credibility of Tufts University, the Baylor College of Medicine, the American Dietetic Association, and the American Diabetes Association. I highly doubt that any of these institutions want to be associated with the idea that Froot Loops, or any of the other unhealthy foods manufactured by the program’s sponsors are “Smart Choices.”
Prefer an ACTUAL Smart Choice? Try Kelly’s Breakfast Oatmeal..
The night before, mix these ingredients together in a small saucepan (takes about 2 minutes):
1/2-1 t. sea salt
1/2 t. cinnamon
1/2 c. real maple syrup (we get ours at our farm, ask at your local health food store)
2 c. organic oats (not the quick-cooking kind)
2 c. warm water (filtered is best) (***Only 1 c. if you’re just adding hot water in the morning – see below.)
4 T. organic whole-milk yogurt (even better: homemade yogurt from raw milk), OR you could also use whey, kefir or buttermilk – using ONE of any of these is the key to breaking down the phytic acid. (Those with severe milk allergies can substitute lemon juice or vinegar.)
Cover and leave it on the counter-top overnight.
In the morning, turn on your stove and heat the oatmeal to the desired temperature, and that’s it!
Go get some more REAL breakfast ideas!
elya said,
September 16, 2009 at 10:55 pm
Is there a program called “Dumb Choices” or “Smart-wanna-be choices” that stand for processed sugar foods that try to look like they are healthy and good for you? If not, there certainly should be.
Thank you for the oatmeal recipe. Can I use steel cut oats for this one? They take so much longer to cook than rolled oats, I wonder if overnight soaking would help with that?
Ren said,
September 16, 2009 at 11:01 pm
Soaked overnight, steel cuts oats cook very quickly. Its the only kind I use!
Jenny said,
September 17, 2009 at 2:53 pm
Smart Wanna Be Choices! I LOVE that. This program is so nuts.
lynn byrd said,
September 17, 2009 at 7:46 pm
Good God, ya’ll. How do these people sleep at night?
Ren said,
September 18, 2009 at 10:38 am
Vampires sleep during the day
Kelly the Kitchen Kop said,
September 18, 2009 at 8:50 am
Ren, I was cheering and LOVING this post, and then I saw the link – double fun! Thanks for nailing them on this stupidity.
Kelly
Ren said,
September 18, 2009 at 10:43 am
Thanks, Kelly – this one really gets under my skin!
“These are horrible choices,” said Walter C. Willett, chairman of the nutrition department of the Harvard School of Public Health.