You have all heard me malign grains in general, however, most cereals fall under an even more unhealthy category: EXTRUDED grains! What the heck is that, you say?! In order to make cold breakfast cereals grains are mixed with water to form a paste and then put in a machine called an extruder. This mush is forced out through tiny holes at high temperatures and pressures to shape them into flakes, shreds, or little “o’s”, etc. These products are then sprayed with a coating of sugar and/or oil to give the cereal the characteristic “crunch”.
This processing destroys most of the nutrients and denatures the fatty acids. It turns the proteins in the grain into neurotoxins. A rat study was done in which one group was fed cornflakes and water and the other group the cardboard box from the corn flakes and water.
Would you believe the ones eating the box faired better!!!The experiment was designed as a joke, but the results were far from funny!
Many Americans eat boxed cereals on a regular basis and most of that is 50% or more sugar coated. Breakfast cereals are a multi-billion dollar industry. The USDA can claim they are healthy because they are “fortified” with a few synthetic nutrients. It is like someone taking $100 from you and giving you back $10- but you are “fortified”!! And if you are thinking that you are doing Ok because you eat cereals from the health food store—well think again!! Although these products may not have the sweeteners and refined grains, they are probably more dangerous. Whole grains are higher in protein and therefore more damaged in the extrusion process.
So if you insist on cereal, look to the old fashioned porridges. Old fashioned rolled oats that take 30-45 minutes to cook is a good choice if you are not grain sensitive. We also have a few "cereal-like" recipes on our website.
June 2022