Dietitian's Take on Jason Kelce's Cereal

Jason Kelce, a former NFL player, has launched his cereal brand called "Kelce Mix," which critics say may be an unhealthy food choice for children.

American football stars Jason and Travis Kelce partnered with General Mills to create a new cereal, which combines their favorite cereals: Reese's Puffs Cereal, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, and Lucky Charms.

"You can now eat and train like the Kelce brothers by getting your hands on the legendary lineup of cereals and watching all the fun from our Cereal Training Camp videos this football season," said Brandon Tyrrell, a senior manager of brand experience for family favorites cereals at General Mills.

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The product and its marketing attracted criticism on social media. Calley Means, an author and a founder of the company True Med Patients, wrote on X that athletes should stop sponsoring food that "destroys kids' metabolic health."

Kelce responded saying that he grew up on these cereals and was a perfectly healthy fit child, and emphasized the importance of eating in moderation.

He wrote on X, "I appreciate you spreading information on what is healthy for people and kids, and I take the obesity epidemic as a country and for kids seriously, but there is also room to eat cereal and ice cream and candy in the right quantities in conjunction with a healthy lifestyle."

About one in five children and adolescents in the United States have obesity, which increases their risk for conditions like type 2 diabetes and hypertension.

There are many causes of obesity, including genetics and environmental conditions. However, high consumption of energy-dense and micronutrient-poor foods are among the top drivers of the condition in children.

Nick Norwithz, Ph.D. in nutrition, wrote on X that despite "moderacy" and "balance" having been core to dietary recommendations for decades, the metabolic health epidemic, including obesity, has gotten progressively worse.

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Norwithz wrote, "Elimination of 'Kelce-approved-in-moderation’ foods has shown promise clinically for the treatment, not only of obesity, but for a broad range of metabolic disorders."

Is 'Kelce Mix' a healthy option for kids?

One cup serving of "Kelce Mix" contains 150 calories and 32 g of carbohydrates, including 11g of added sugar, as well as 3 g of fat and 3 g of protein. The product is fortified with B vitamins, iron, zinc, and calcium.

Courtney Pelitera, MS, RD, CNS at Top Nutrition Coaching, says she would not consider "Kelce Mix" a healthy food. Still, cereal could be one part of a complete breakfast meal if combined with a good source of protein like eggs or Greek yogurt and a fruit or vegetable.

The CDC Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends that no more than 10% of daily calories come from added sugar. For the average person, this would be 50 g of added sugar, Pelitera says, while a serving of "Kelce Mix" alone contains 11g.

Pelitera says that over time, a diet high in added sugars and low in nutrient-dense foods can contribute to weight gain, obesity, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease.

Consuming the appropriate portion sizes for this cereal, which is one cup, and combining it with other nutritious foods will allow children to consume this fun food without sacrificing their future health.

Pelitera

Milk and cereal are the most frequently consumed breakfast foods and beverages among children in the U.S., but they don't necessarily qualify as healthy meals.

According to the Food and Drug Administration recommendations proposed in 2023, packaged foods should not contain more than 2.5 g of added sugars per serving, meaning that most cereals cannot be considered healthy. Additionally, healthy cereal must contain 3/4 ounces of whole grains and no more than 1 g of saturated fat.

A Healthnews analysis of 15 popular children's breakfast cereals revealed that some of them contain hydrogenated and palm oils, which are sources of unhealthy fats. Some brands are also high in added sugar and sodium but low in fiber and essential nutrients.

'Kelce Mix' as a pre-workout

According to Pelitera, "Kelce Mix" may be a great choice for a pre-workout meal, which should consist mainly of simple carbohydrates, with about 30 g of carbohydrates per hour of practice.

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She tells Healthnews, "One cup of Kelce mix fits that criterion perfectly. I would recommend this to any of my athletes who want to try it out as their pre-workout snack 30 minutes to one hour before exercise. "

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