Cereals are commonly consumed for breakfast in the developed world. They are good sources of antioxidants, especialy the bran and germ parts.
Researchers in the US evaluated the antioxidant content of ready to eat breakfast cereals from the General Mills brand and found in US supermarkets.
They reported that whole-grain-wheat- and oat-based products had on average higher antioxidant content than products from refined rice or corn ingredients. Regardless, all breakfast cereals are good sources of antioxidants, comparable to common fruits and vegetables.
Antioxidant Content of Breakfast Cereals
| Antioxidant Sources | Antioxidant Content (µmoles TE/100 grams) |
|---|---|
| Multi-Bran Chex® | 3900 |
| Basic 4® | 3600 |
| Crispy Wheaties ’N Raisins®2 | 3500 |
| Raisin Nut Bran® | 3100 |
| Wheat Chex®2 | 3000 |
| Whole Grain Total®2 | 2800 |
| Wheaties®2 | 2800 |
| Multigrain Cheerios®2 | 2700 |
| Oatmeal Crisp/Raisin®2 | 2700 |
| Apple Cinnamon Cheerios® | 2700 |
| Cheerios®2 | 2600 |
| Honey Nut Cheerios® | 2200 |
| Oatmeal Crisp/Apple Cinnamon®2 | 2200 |
| Country Corn Flakes® | 2000 |
| Corn Chex® | 1600 |
| Kix® | 1400 |
| Rice Chex® | 1300 |
All products were about one month old when analyzed. All the products are General Mills brand. TE = Trolox Equivalents. The Antioxidant content was measured by DPPH method. Samples with 2 mark on them are whole grain products.
Reference:
Harold E. Miller, Fred Rigelhof, Leonard Marquart, Aruna Prakash, and Mitch Kanter. 2000. Antioxidant Content of Whole Grain Breakfast Cereals, Fruits and Vegetables. Journal of the American College of Nutrition, Vol. 19, No. 90003, 312S-319S.