Kellogg’s Special K Mini Breaks
I saw a full page advert in a Sunday supplement magazine yesterday for Special K Mini Breaks – Chocolate variety. Described as “Mmmmmmmmmm”; “crunch”; “delish”; “biscuit”‘; “chocolate”; “crispy”; “choccy”; “biscuity”‘; “crunch”; “moreish”; “99 calories a bag”; “crunchy, delicious, biscuity bites”.
How to get every word possible to tempt a dieter to eat stuff that they should be avoiding?! And, of course, as people who eat Special K are Queens of calorie counting, the 99 calories a bag is going to appeal. 99 calories of what, however? This is the full ingredients list from the Kellogg’s web site:
Cereals (Rice, Wheat Flour, Whole Oats, Wholewheat, Rice Flour), Sugar, Vegetable Oil, Chocolate (5%)(Sugar, Cocoa Mass, Cocoa Powder), Wheat Gluten, Glucose Syrup, Defatted Wheatgerm, Dried Skimmed Milk, Partially Inverted Sugar Syrup, Salt, Oat Fibre, Barley Malt Flavouring, Raising Agents (E500, E450a), Flavourings, Emulsifier (Soy Lecithin), Antioxidant (E320), Vitamin C, Niacin, Iron, Vitamin B6, Riboflavin (B2), Thiamin (B1), Folic Acid, Vitamin B12.
Ignore the vitamins added to give this product a false impression of containing nutrients and you have sugar in the form of sugar (twice), glucose syrup, partially inverted sugar syrup and the flavourings are no doubt sweet ones. Then you have wheat flour, whole wheat, wheat gluten and defatted wheat germ. Ever wondered how we end up eating more sugar and wheat than any other ingredients out there?!
– 100g of this product is 72g of carbohydrate and 414 calories.
– 100g of pork chop is 0g of carbohydrate and 123 calories!
– 100 of apple is 14g of carbohydrate and 52 calories.
– 100g of porridge oats (dry oats, no water) is 69g carbohydrate and 379 calories.
Even if you care about calories – there are far better ways to consume calories than to eat 100g of this frightening selection of ingredients.
I had an eating disorder once, so I know what it is like to binge and starve and be horrible to oneself. I truly believe that putting this product in your mouth is being horrible to yourself. Be nice to yourself and eat real food! Nature makes the healthiest food – not Kellogg’s.
recently i’ve come across several groups of anecdotal posts stating that blood glucose rises dramatically after the consumption of oats.
i’ve tried to google to find some hard science, but the ‘oats control blood glucose’ meme is prevalent. (aside: if the opposite is true, now there’s a class action lawsuit of substance)
do you have any info on oats and blood glucose?
I cannot believe that someone made a comment about ‘puritanical preaching’. Seriously. We are inundated everyday with false advertising about foods that are not even real foods. We have to put up with this every day in our faces yet when someone actually says how crap it really is (thanks Zoe), people get annoyed.
You can never eat too healthy and there are alot more people who are obese, overweight and unhealthy than there are eating ‘too healthy’.
I wish it was the opposite.
Keep up the great posts Zoe.
Mary,
I think you missed the whole point. The point is that people think they are eating something healthy when in fact they are not. Big companies like Kellogs play with our emotions and support this idea that calories is what matters.
You don’t need to be on a diet? Just shift they way and what you eat. And sorry, too much healthy eating is bad for you? Please, do you even hear what you are saying. It is like saying breathing too much clean air is bad for you.
I believe in a treat every now and then as well, but I think Zoe is simply trying to dispel the myth out there that less calories is better and educating people about what is in their food so they can make an informed decision. At the end of the day, I might choose to eat a Custard Filled donut from Krispy Creams, but at least I know how much crap is in it.
Keep up the good work Zoe and thank you for trying to get us back to what nature intended.
Oh please. All this obsessive puritanical preaching about what we eat and what it does to you. As long as you remember that most things are fine in moderation, a little naughty morsel every now and then won’t harm you. I’m on a diet and eat a little of most things which are healthy but allow myself the odd treat, such as a bag of Kellogs Special Mini K Breaks. It’s better than a donut and lighter on the stomach. I love it and look forward to having it in the evening when I’m reading.
Everything in excess is bad for you, including too much healthy eating!