Many people enjoy eating cereal for breakfast all over the world; however, there are, unfortunately, not all that many healthy cereal options on the market.
Many cereals available for purchase contain large amounts of sodium and sugar, which can be bad for your health when consumed regularly and excessively.
Popular cereals like Cheerios and Cinnamon Toast Crunch contain large amounts of sodium that can cause many consumers to run over their recommended daily sodium intake.
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Best Low Sodium Cereals Explained
Thankfully, there are some brands that offer low sodium cereal variants for those who are concerned about their sodium intake.
This is owing to the fact that consuming excessive amounts of sodium on a daily basis can cause raised blood pressure, which can increase your risk of stroke and heart disease.
Kellogg’s Frosted Mini-Wheats Cereal
Kellogg’s Frosted Mini-Wheats Cereal is one of the few breakfast cereals that is low in sodium. This cereal can, therefore, be eaten on a daily basis without consumers having to worry about exceeding their daily sodium intake.
Ingredients & nutrition facts
1 serving of Kellogg’s Frosted Mini-Wheats Cereal contains:
- Calories: 210
- Total fat: 1.5g or 2% of Daily Value
- Cholesterol: 0mg
- Sodium: 10mg or 0% of Daily Value
- Total carbohydrates: 51g or 19% of Daily Value
- Dietary fiber: 6g or 21% of Daily Value
- Added Sugar: 12g or 24% of Daily Value
- Protein: 5g or 4% of Daily Value
- Vitamin D: 0mcg
- Calcium: 0mg
- Iron 18mg or 100% of Daily Value
- Potassium: 160mg or 2% of Daily Value
- Thiamin: 10% of Daily Value
- Niacin: 10% of Daily Value
- Folate: 400mcg or 100% of Daily Value
- Phosphorus: 10% of Daily Value
- Magnesium: 10% of Daily Value
- Zinc: 10% of Daily Value
The ingredients used to make Kellogg’s Frosted Mini-Wheats Cereal are:
- Whole grain wheat
- Sugar
- Brown rice syrup
- Gelatin
- BHT
- Reduced Iron
- Folic Acid
Is it healthy?
While Kellog’s Frosted Mini-Wheats Cereal is quite healthy due to its low sodium content, it is certainly not the healthiest cereal on the market.
While it would definitely be suitable for a low sodium diet, it contains 24% of the recommended daily intake of sugar. This means that those who eat this cereal daily will have to reduce their sugar intake throughout the rest of the day.
This is due to the fact that eating an excessive amount of sugar can contribute to weight gain and also increase your risk of contracting heart disease.
Is it gluten-free?
Frosted Mini-Wheats Cereal, like many other cereals made with whole grains, is not gluten-free, as gluten is derived from wheat.
Is it vegan?
While some breakfast cereals are vegan, Frosted Mini-Wheats Cereal is definitely not, as it contains gelatin, which is an animal product derived from the feet of pigs.
Is it keto?
Frosted Mini-Wheats Cereal is also not suitable for consumers following a keto diet, as it contains a large amount of carbohydrates and some protein, which are forbidden when following a keto diet.
This is due to the fact that protein and carbohydrates prevent your body from entering a state of ketosis.
Protein & fiber content
One serving of Frosted Mini-Wheats Cereal contains 21% of your daily fiber intake per serving, which is an adequate amount of fiber for a breakfast cereal.
However, it does not contain much protein, so consumers will have to ensure they get more protein in the rest of their meals throughout the day.
Post Shredded Wheat Original Cereal
Post Shredded Wheat Original Cereal is a high fiber whole-grain cereal that will be suitable for most people on a low sodium diet. It contains little to no added sugar or sodium whatsoever, which makes it one of the healthier cereals available for purchase.
Ingredients & nutrition facts
1 cup of Post Shredded Wheat Original Cereal contains:
- Calories: 160
- Total fat: 1g or 2% of Daily Value
- Saturated fat: 0mg
- Cholesterol: 0mg
- Sodium: 0mg or 0% of Daily Value
- Potassium: 180mg or 5% of Daily Value
- Total carbohydrates: 37g or 12% of Daily Value
- Dietary fiber: 6g or 24% of Daily Value
- Sugars: 0g
- Protein: 5g
- Vitamin A: 0% of Daily Value
- Vitamin C: 0% of Daily Value
- Calcium: 2% of Daily Value
- Iron: 6% of Daily Value
- Thiamin: 8% of Daily Value
- Niacin: 15% of Daily Value
- Vitamin B6: 4% of Daily Value
- Folic acid: 4% of Daily Value
- Phosphorus: 15% of Daily Value
- Magnesium: 15% of Daily Value
- Zinc: 10% of Daily Value
- Copper 8% of Daily Value
The ingredients used to make Post Shredded Wheat Original Cereal are:
- Whole grain wheat
- Wheat bran
Is it healthy?
While Post Shredded Wheat Original Cereal is extremely low in sodium and contains no added sugar, it also does not contain many vitamins and minerals.
You would likely need to eat a lot of fresh vegetables and fruit in the rest of your meals in order to account for the lack of vitamins and minerals found in this cereal. Many other breakfast cereals do not, however, include as much fiber per serving as this cereal does, which does make it quite healthy.
Is it gluten-free?
All whole wheat cereals are not gluten-free, as gluten is derived from grains, which means that Post Shredded Wheat Original Cereal will not be suitable for those with Celiac Disease or gluten intolerance.
Is it vegan?
Post Shredded Wheat Original Cereal is suitable for vegans, as the cereal is not only low in sodium but also contains no animal products in its ingredients.
Is it keto?
Post Shredded Wheat Original Cereal is made from whole grains, which contain a large amount of carbohydrates, so it will not be suitable to eat on a keto diet.
It also contains some protein, which is also not suitable for a keto diet.
Protein & fiber content
Post Shredded Wheat Cereal contains 24% of your recommended daily fiber intake per serving, which is a good amount of fiber to consume for breakfast.
However, it does not contain much protein, so those who choose to eat this cereal for breakfast will need to ensure that they consume more protein throughout the day to maintain a balanced diet.
Forager Project Organic Grain-Free Os Cinnamon
For those interested in a plant-based low sodium cereal, Forager Project’s Organic Grain-Free Os Cinnamon offers a cereal with a great flavor that is suitable for vegans, gluten-free, and is suitable for those on a low sodium diet.
Ingredients & nutrition facts
1 Cup of Forager Project Organic Grain-Free Os Cinnamon Cereal contains:
- Calories: 110
- Total fat: 1g or 1% of Daily Value
- Cholesterol: omg
- Sodium: 5mg or 0% of Daily Value
- Total carbohydrates: 26g or 9% of Daily Value
- Dietary Fiber: 4g or 14% of Daily Value
- Added sugar: 3g or 6% of Daily Value
- Protein: 4g
- Vitamin D: 0mcg
- Iron: 2mg or 10% of Daily Value
- Calcium: 39 mg or 4% of Daily Value
- Potassium: 113mg or 2% of Daily Value
The ingredients used to make Forager Project Organic Grain-Free Os Cinnamon Cereal are:
- Cassava root
- Navy beans
- Cane sugar
- Cinnamon
- Sunflower oil
- Safflower oil
- Pea protein
Is it healthy?
Forager Project Organic Grain-Free Os Cinnamon Cereal is a healthy cereal, as it contains very little sodium, fat, or other unhealthy products.
However, it also does not offer much in the way of vitamins and nutrients and is better used as a means to lose weight than as a regular breakfast cereal.
It contains very little iron, fiber, potassium, and protein, which means these nutrients will have to be sourced from other meals or supplements if you wish to have a balanced, healthy diet.
Is it gluten-free?
Forager Project Organic Grain-Free Os Cinnamon Cereal is entirely gluten-free, as its name notes that it is grain-free, which means no gluten is used in the making of the product.
This cereal will, therefore, be suitable for those with Celiac disease or gluten intolerance.
Is it vegan?
Forager Project Organic Grain-Free Os Cinnamon Cereal is made from entirely plant-based products, so vegans looking for a cereal that is low in sodium need not look any further.
Is it keto?
While this cereal does contain carbohydrates, it has very few of them in each serving, so consumers on keto diets should be able to eat this cereal occasionally without preventing their bodies from entering ketosis.
This cereal also contains very little protein, so eating a serving occasionally will also not prevent your body from entering ketosis.
Protein & fiber content
A lot of fiber generally comes from wheat and grain products, and this cereal is entirely grain-free, which means that it does not contain enough dietary fiber to be considered a substantial meal.
Forager Project Organic Grain-Free Os Cinnamon Cereal does not contain much protein either, so you will need to eat more of both in the rest of your meals to ensure that you have a balanced diet.