For those special mornings where you want a bowl of cereal to start your day with a smile on your face, but don’t necessarily want said smile to be sucker punched with sugar, Cheerios is there to make your dreams come true.  

General Mills is legendary in the cereal world. They offer a variety of cereals unmatched by many brands. From the sugary, guilty pleasures of Reese’s Puffs, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Cookie Crisp, Lucky Charms, and Trix, to the healthier options of Kix, Cheerios, Chex, Wheaties, and Fiber One, there’s undoubtedly a cereal for everyone. As a household brand name, there’s a lot of pressure on General Mills to produce delicious, memorable cereals on a consistent basis. While it’s always exciting to see what they’ll come up with next, sometimes there’s no beating of the classics. 

When discussing classic cereals, you can’t leave out General Mills’ OG cereal: Cheerios. One of the company’s oldest and longest running cereals, Cheerios has been around since 1941, when it was first released under the title CheeriOats. While more sugary varieties of the cereal exist like Honey Nut, Frosted, Chocolate, Berry varieties, and many more, the original is still tough to beat. 

A bowl of heart-healthy, gluten-free, cholesterol-lowering, whole-grain oats may not sound very appetizing, but is the basis of all Cheerios varieties, both sugary and non-sugary. And as much as you may think your delicious bowl of morning joy relies completely on its high sugar content, Cheerios proves the opposite to be true. 

It may not be as exciting as other, more sugary cereals in terms of flavor and appearance, but it’s just as enjoyable and satisfying. Plus, you get the bonus of being able to look in the mirror and say, “I made a good choice and opted out of the sugar-coated puffed carbs I usually eat.” 

The beloved Cheerios logo and bright yellow colored box synonymous with this classic cereal can still be found in all cereal aisles. Each box of Cheerios boasts its health benefits while simultaneously drawing consumers in with its cheery warmth, pun intended.  

A one and one-half cup serving size of Cheerios provides only 140 calories, a shockingly low sugar content of two grams, a pleasingly high fiber content of four grams, as well as 12 vitamins and minerals, non-gmo ingredients, and a calcium and iron dense way to start your morning. The famous puffed whole grain oat ring pieces are a childhood memory waiting to be gulped down in front of some morning cartoons.