Kellogg Agrees to Quit Advertising to Kids

On June 14th, the food maker Kellogg agreed to set nutrition standards for children's snacks and cereals or stop advertising them to young kids. One serving of a snack or cereal will contain less than 200 calories, no trans fat and less than two grams of saturated fat. Each serving will have less than 230 milligrams of sodium and no more than 12 grams of sugar. Any Kellogg product that does not meet these standards will no longer be advertised to children under the age of twelve.

Young children are very susceptible to advertising, especially television commercials featuring fun colors, happy kids and lots of sugar. My kids are growing out of that stage now, but for a few years they would beg for every sweet cereal that showed up between (and during) cartoons. Of course I can't really blame them; when I was a kid I was sure that Pink Panther Flakes had to become a mandatory inclusion to my childhood diet.

Reducing the amount of sugar in its products while still retaining the sweet taste that kids love will be the biggest challenge for Kellogg. High sugar Froot Loops and Cocoa Krispies would have to be reformulated or disappear from advertising campaigns, but slightly-less-sweet Frosted Flakes currently has eleven grams of sugar per serving.

Changing advertising methods and reformulating sugary cereals is a step in the right direction, but it is still difficult to think of Frosted Flakes as a healthy food. Whole grain cereals like Wheaties and Raisin Bran are better choices, even with a little bit of sugar on top.

Poll:Which type of cereal do you or your kids like best?

• Sugar frosted anything
• Whole grain cereals with sugar on top
• Whole grain cereals with no extra sugar
• Hot cooked cereal
• My kids or I don't like cereal
• View Results

More About Kids and Nutrition

• Quick and Painless Ways to Sneak Good Nutrition Into Any Kid's Diet
• How Do I Avoid The Junk Food Trap?
• Introduce Your Child to Healthy Cooking

Daily Nutrition Tip