While I strive to eat foods that are made from natural ingredients, I am finding it increasingly difficult to find them on store shelves. Most sweetened yogurts, cereals and breakfast-bars are unnaturally flavored and for the discerning consumer it’s frustrating to read words like “Natural” and “Light” on the cover only to find that either artificial sweeteners or various forms of Corn Syrup are the key ingredients.

Now, when I spoke about the “Natural” label sometime back, it’s coincidental that I used Nature Valley’s Trail Mix Bars as an example of misleading box-labeling. “100% Natural”, proclaimed that box, but of course it contained High Maltose as well as High Fructose Corn Syrups.

This is why when I initially set out to review “Nature Valley Oats ‘N Honey 100 Percent Natural Cereal” I was bracing myself for a similar ingredients list. But I was pleasantly surprised: as far as ingredients go, this cereal is indeed 100% natural. So what’s the skinny? Read on …

Disclosure: I was sent one (1) 14oz box of this cereal to try and then present a product review on FitnessMantra. As always you can be assured that my reviews will always be unbiased, irrespective of whether I purchase the product or receive it to review.
Product: Nature Valley Oats ‘N Honey 100 Percent Natural Cereal
Manufacturer: Nature Valley brand of General Mills
Presentation: 14oz standard box with cereal in sealed plastic packaging
Serving Size: 1 cup (56g)
Allergy information: Contains Soy, Wheat and Milk ingredients
Nutrition Information: Here is the nutrition label information for Nature Valley Oats ‘N Honey 100 Percent Natural Cereal (source: Products section of the Nature Valley website):

Positives:

1. Yes, it’s 100% Natural: When it’s so rare these days to find a processed product that can still call itself all natural, I would rate this the biggest positive. This cereal uses a combination of sugar, malt extract, honey and brown sugar syrup for sweetening purposes.
2. A plethora of whole grains: Although rice and rice flour are key ingredients, this cereal also includes the whole grain variety of oats, wheat, corn and also wheat bran and corn bran. This means you get the benefits of fiber as well as longer periods of feeling full (an important requirement of a good breakfast)
3. Calorie-wise this cereal is perfect for breakfast. Prepared with 1/2 cup skim milk, it has 270 calories with just 25 calories from fat.
4. 4g of protein and 4g of fiber: Thanks to the whole grains you get this double advantage of nourishing protein and disease-fighting and bowel-helping fiber.
5. Taste-wise the granola pieces add a delightful twist to the whole cereal-eating experience. They are so crunchy and sweet, I found myself hunting and finishing them off first!

Negatives:

1. In my opinion, nutrition-wise there is only one negative and, to be honest, I would like to make as little a deal of this as possible: the cereal has 16g of sugar. Yes, that is to be expected of a product which is Oats ‘N Honey after all and has granola to boot, but in fact others in my household who tasted this actually commented about how excessively sweet it was. The only good thing (if you can call it that) is this sugar is from all natural sources (especially honey which is a treasure trove of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants) and while I would like to maintain sugar in a single serving to under 10g if possible, I don’t want to be a big naysayer.
2. Although I was not given any price information, business-wire reports that 14oz box retails for $3.99 and Walgreen’s is, in fact, selling it for that much. This is a little pricier than comparable alternatives so that is something to also keep in mind.
3. Finally, this is more of a texture issue than anything related to nutrition so it’s nothing major: While eating the cereal, especially the rice crisps, I could feel a noticeable powdery substance along my teeth and it was consistent across multiple bites. I am just mentioning this so readers can comment and say if they noticed this too or if it was unique to the sample/batch I was sent and something was corrected/modified slightly in later packages.

Conclusion:

Although I did mention the slightly excessive sugar content in the cereal, if 16g of sugar from natural sources is what it takes for people to switch from a Denny’s Grand Slam sausage breakfast to a healthful whole grains one, then so be it. As an aside, a good alternative might be Honey Nut Cheerios, but although it restricts itself to 9g of sugar per serving, you also only get 3g of protein and just 2g of fiber. Also with just 150 calories per serving, I think it might be less satisfying - a good breakfast should probably be more in the 250-300 calorie range and if you achieve that with a glass of orange juice your sugar intake is back to comparable levels with this Nature Valley Cereal anyway!

Bottom line: don’t focus too much on the sugar aspect and if something like a Natural Oatmeal breakfast is too strict, at least begin with all natural cereals like this one and work your way toward even healthier options.

And Finally, Just For Fun:

If you thought food-product-reviews had to be purely about taste and nutrition, think again! Sarah of Hollywood Flakes presents a singularly unique review of this same product and in my opinion, General Mills should hire that little reviewer to be their product mascot. I bet sales would soar! Behold:

- Source: Hollywood Flakes

Technorati Tags: health, nutrition, granola, product review, food review, general mills, Nature Valley Oats ‘N Honey 100 Percent Natural Cereal

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Fiber One Chewy Bars - Oats and Chocolate is the first product I am officially placing in the FitnessMantra Product Review category. Although I have spoken about other products earlier, this is the first one I am officially reviewing.

Disclosure: I was sent one (1) box of five (5) bars to try and then present a product review on FitnessMantra. You can be assured that my reviews will always be unbiased, irrespective of whether I purchase the product or receive it to review.

Product: Fiber One Chewy Bars - Oats and Chocolate
Manufacturer: General Mills
Presentation: Single-serving bars, individually wrapped and labeled with Nutrition Facts and Ingredients
Serving Size: 1 bar (40g)
Allergy information: Contains Soy, Milk, Almond, Peanut, Sunflower and Wheat ingredients
Nutrition Information: Here is the nutrition label information for Fiber One Chewy Bars - Oats and Chocolate scanned directly from the box (this is FitnessMantra; you had to know this was coming!):

Positives:

1. Visually, the bars are very appealing: they are cream in color with little chocolate pieces and make an appealing visual stimulation (even a wavy chocolate line across the bar for effect!)
2. Calorie-wise the bar is perfect for a snack (it has 140 calories with 35 calories (less than 1/3 of total - the ideal number) from fat)
3. As far as taste goes, you might not even realise it before the bar is gone (chocolate has that effect on people!). The bars are soft, chewy (yet not all that sticky although it is winter now and you might not want to leave these in your car during summer!) and great on the taste buds.
4. Although the primary source of fiber is chicory root extract (chicory is a plant more famous for the use of its leaves as a flavoring agent for coffee) and you might expect a bland taste, the other ingredients mask this taste and make it enjoyable to eat.
5. Of course the biggest selling point of the bar: fiber, fiber, fiber! Now a single bar has 9g of fiber which accounts for about 35% of your recommended daily allowance (RDA) of fiber of 25g. But you must realize that this comes at a cost of some pretty unhealthy ingredients which brings me to the …

Negatives:

1. You already know I am a stickler for the ethical labeling of products especially Products that are labeled “Natural” so when I saw “Naturally Flavored” in bold across the top of the packaging you know where my eyes traveled to next: the ingredients list. And sure enough there were all the usual suspects: “confectioner’s shellac” listed as the second ingredient (meaning it is the second largest component by weight) contains hydrogenated coconut oil (and if not specified, this usually indicates “partial hydrogenation” - fully hydrogenated oils are usually labeled as “fully hydrogenated”). As always do not be fooled by 0g trans fat: manufacturers need not list trans fat quantities that are less than 0.5g.
2. In the same vein as #1 above, note the two ingredients High Fructose Corn Syrup and its close cousin High Maltose Corn Syrup. These are about as natural as centrifuged, enzymatically-sweetened, genetically-modified corn can get! You know the truth: HFCS cannot truly be considered a natural product although some recent research suggests the body metabolizes High Fructose Corn Syrup similarly to sugar.
3. With 10g of sugar this is not the best source of fiber for those with diabetic conditions. They are probably better off with the cereal version of this bar or other varieties like All Bran.

Alternatives:

What could you have instead of “Fiber One Chewy Bars - Oats and Chocolate” and still get your fill of fiber? Why, a whole-grain sandwich would do just great! Infact dab a little peanut butter and throw in some blue-berries (my all-time favorite breakfast right there) and you have yourself a nice combination of whole grains, fiber, protein and antioxidants. Granted it’s not as easy to put in your purse as the chewy bars but at least you know it’s good for you without potentially harmful ingredients.

Conclusion:

While they satisfy the primary selling point of being high in fiber and in fact do so without subjecting one to the usual bland taste that fiber-rich products are famous for, Fiber One Chewy Bars - Oats and Chocolate cannot be unconditionally recommended unless General Mills makes a few changes to the ingredients (lopping off the hydrogenated oils and artificial sweeteners would be a good start - after which the “Naturally Flavored” label will actually be truthful). When McDonalds and Wendys can agree to be trans fat free, I wonder what’s taking a company like General Mills, which strives to be associated with healthy eating, so long.

Eat the bars as a rare treat but don’t you, for even one minute, believe you can justify having these everyday as a “fiber food” - probably “candy bar” is a better term for them. Instead try yogurt topped with flaxseed or the whole grain sandwich - they are both satisfying and give you the fiber you need - naturally!

Technorati Tags: health, nutrition, fiber, general mills, Fiber One Chewy Bars - Oats and Chocolate

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