They Ruined Cereal

Um, so did no one else notice that this year they ruined cereal? I don't mean like they ruined Lucky Charms or Cocoa Puffs, I mean like EVERY cereal now tastes like a flavor of Cheerios.

This is because the cereal industry didn't want to be next in the national pre-occupation with weight and they thought they could head off a nasty Dateline expose by changing all of the General Mills cereals to "whole grain". So then naturally nearly every other cereal maker followed suit. There are still a couple of hold outs - Corn Pops and Rice Crispies don't seem to be crammed with wholesome whole grain goodness - but just about every other cereal has a new formulation.

I have tried a few of these cereals. I have to say, yyyyyyyyyyyyuck. They really taste like cocoa flavored Cheerios. What really baffles me is the almost complete lack of any mention of this breakfast food revolution just about anywhere on the web. Oh sure, it's hailed by health foodies as a great leap forward. Duh. But what surprised me is that even the cereal fans didn't seem to mind or notice that Cocoa Puffs have a distinctly different taste.

One thing that's been tripping me out lately is the number of people (Gen Y and whoever's after them I guess) who claim violent food allergies. I read that gluten intolerance can actually be caused by premature exposure to wheat. Then I think about all the little babies I've seen whose first solid foods included Cheerios and now virtually any cereal. Hmmmm. So really, white flour and corn are that much more detrimental to our diet than wheat and nuts? Some girl dropped dead today because she kissed her boyfriend who had eaten a peanut treat.

Now I understand that obesity is a problem in America. I get that creative changes are a key to improving national health, but haven't we learned anything from all the diets and fads? I mean I have been dieting for 20 years and it's not about eradicating a food. After the new cereals hit some health folks said that yeah, it was better but it still had roughly the same nutritional value. Meanwhile, boy - I mean BOY do those cereals suck!