Cheerios And Cholesterol: Do They Really Help? | Going Lo-Co

Cheerios and Cholesterol: Do They Really Help?

Posted on July 30, 2013

Previously published on Answers.com.

The Cheerios box touts it can lower cholesterol: sometimes boxes just say Cheerios lowers cholesterol, and sometimes they claim cholesterol can be lowered by as much as 10% in just one month. Regardless of the type of cholesterol-lowering claim, Cheerios boxes also prominently display the American Heart Association’s Heart-Check mark indicating it’s a heart-healthy food. Is all this just hype or can Cheerios really reduce cholesterol?

What is the AHA’s ‘Heart-Check Mark?”

Of the red and white icon prominently displayed on Cheerios boxes (and other foods), the AHA explains, “When you spot the American Heart Association’s Heart-Check mark, you’ll instantly know the food has been certified to meet the American Heart Association’s guidelines for a heart-healthy food. It’s a good first step in creating an overall sensible eating plan.”

How Can Cheerios Claim To Reduce Cholesterol?

In April 2009 the results of a research study conducted by the Bell Institute of Health and Nutrition (which is owned by General Mills, the maker of Cheerios) were published.  According to the General Mills website, “The study, which was conducted and presented by Provident Clinical Research, found that eating two 1 1/2 cup servings of Cheerios daily, as part of a reduced calorie diet low in fat, lowered LDL or “bad” cholesterol about 10 percent in one month. Cheerios is the only leading ready-to-eat cereal clinically proven to lower cholesterol.” So a research study has indeed proven that Cheerios can help lower cholesterol.

Do All Cheerios Products Reduce Cholesterol?

According to the Cheerios website, only Original Cheerios and Honey Nut Cheerios have the soluble fiber necessary to help reduce cholesterol.

How Does Cheerios Help Reduce Cholesterol?

Cheerios contain soluble fiber because they are made with whole grain oats. The Cheerios site explains, “this type of soluble fiber acts like a kind of “sponge,” soaking up some of the cholesterol in the body so that the body can get rid of it naturally. Lowering cholesterol can lower the risk of clogged arteries and heart disease. Additionally, original Cheerios and Honey Nut Cheerios are naturally cholesterol free.”

How Many Servings of Cheerios Are Necessary?

Not one bowl.  Not two bowls.  But three bowls daily of regular Cheerios (or 4 bowls of Honey Nut Cheerios) are necessary to achieve these cholesterol-lowering results. (One cup is equal to one serving, according to the Cheerios website.) That is a LOT of Cheerios.

And even if you did manage to eat 3-4 bowls of Cheerios daily, in order to get those lower cholesterol benefits, you’d need to eat all those Cheerios as part of a reduced calorie, low-fat diet.  It is not enough to just eat the Cheerios if the rest of one’s diet is not heart-healthy.

Indeed, Daniel Edmundowicz, M.D., director of preventive cardiology at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center’s Cardiovascular Institute was quoted on www.hearthealthyonline.com as saying, “If you want to eat Cheerios to lower your cholesterol, you have to do so consistently, add exercise, and maintain an overall healthy diet-then, eating Cheerios might drop your cholesterol levels a little bit.”

Conclusion

Cheerios have indeed been proven to lower cholesterol – for those who can eat 3-4 bowls daily as part of a reduced calorie, low-fat diet.  The key is not necessarily Cheerios – it’s eating 3 grams of soluble fiber daily as part of a healthy diet and exercise regime. So, don’t expect to just eat a bowl of Cheerios daily and think that alone will lower your cholesterol.  But if you love Cheerios and can eat that much cereal daily, Cheerios (or other cereals high in soluble fiber) are a terrific heart-healthy choice that can indeed lower your cholesterol.

Tip

If you want to find a breakfast option with a lot of soluble fiber – the key to lowering cholesterol – there are better choices than Cheerios.  Just ½ cup of Quaker Oatmeal (old fashioned OR quick) contains 2 grams of soluble fiber – double the fiber in one-sixth the serving size.  And there are many high fiber cereals which deliver more soluble fiber than Cheerios in a far more reasonable serving size: see SelfNutritionData’s Foods Highest in Dietary Fiber.

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