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Comment by malux85 | Hacker News Reader

I think you strike a good balance between personal freedoms and health of the population.

You’re right in that availability is the problem.

If I go across the road to the store, there’s a whole WALL covered in hundreds, maybe thousands, of sugar drinks, all very very cheap.

You know what there isn’t any of in the whole store? Something healthy and low sugar / high protein.

I have the luxury of time and a little bit of money so I can choose, but what about the busy parent who just needs energy? The busy office worker with a bunch of projects due, or just the poor individual with not much money, I don’t think it’s fair to setup these kind of situations and then blame the individuals for their choices, we have to step in at a governmental level

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I went little further. I could not find low or no sugar Nestle cereals at the local supermarket, then I asked their support if they have something with low sugar. Their rep wrote that they have lowered the sugar amount by 34% from 2000 to 2010, but it is still not clear if those amount are OK, when I taste the sugar amount is definitely high. I do think the government should step in and promote healthy food and habits

So many of these "we lowered X" things are simply "We cut the portion size down by 34% to hit calorie/sugar goals".

That's where you get dumb things like "Here's a candy bar with 3.5 servings" to try and trick a consumer into thinking it's not as calorie dense as it is.

It's really tragic that lots of Americans think this kind of garbage is a healthier alternative to other kinds of breakfast. It may actually have less sugar than pancakes drenched in some disgusting syrup, but it's still garbage. There's a real problem with nutritional literacy in this country. The manufacturers of these products really aren't helping here either. Cheerios have a big 'CAN LOWER CHOLERSTEROL' plastered on the front of the pack, but the contents are still literally 24% added sugar.

From the Cheerios box in my cupboard: 140 calories per serving, 1g added sugar per serving. 1g carb = 4 calories. 4 / 140 = 3%.

I would not be at all surprised if some flavor of Cheerios is 24% added sugar, but regular Cheerios are not so bad in the sugar department.

> 1g added sugar per serving

That is still a good amount of sugar given it’s every day and setting your morning baseline. If taken with e.g. a refined juice or sweetened coffee, that’s probably setting one up for sugar cravings in a few hours.

A slice of bread (in the U.S.) has more than 1g of added sugar (and less than 140 calories). (If you know of any besides Ezekiel that have less sugar, I would like to hear about it.) I don't think it is fair to villainize Cheerios when it is one of the least offensive options among ultraprocessed breakfast cereals. Especially based on... other things that aren't Cheerios? Juice (20+ g sugar) and coffee sweetener (4+ g sugar) would be the villains in this scenario.

> don't think it is fair to villainize Cheerios when it is one of the least offensive options among ultraprocessed breakfast cereals

You’re correct. I’m damning the whole category within the context of this discussion.

1g of sugar per serving is hardly anything. You are weakening your argument by being hyperbolic.

> 1g of sugar per serving is hardly anything

I'll stand by it being "a good amount" given it's incorporated into a daily ritual.

What is the serving size and more importantly how does the serving size compare to what people actually eat?

Serving size is 1.5 cups. Regardless of how much people eat, it's still only 3% added sugar.

There's nothing wrong with the "can lower cholesterol" banner on it because it's a source of whole grains and it has no saturated fat. That combo generally does lower cholesterol when put to the test, and it probably is one of the best cereals in the aisle.

Directing people towards better alternatives is a good thing.

Is this regular Cheerios, or Honey Nut?

The Honey Nut Cheerios are glazed in sugar, but the plain Cheerios (to my taste) don't have much if any. Don't have any here to check the ingredients though. If I want cereal for breakfast I generally make plain oatmeal.

FWIW - the convenient stores near me sell the Core Power Elite Protein drinks. I have picked them up and it helps make my protein goals on days where I come up short. They do taste pretty good but more expensive than a soda.

It's possible people are depressed and looking for the most tasty option.

One thing 7-11s have started stocking in recent years is packaged hard boiled eggs. The price is insane if you compare it to boiling your own, and they are a bit tasteless, but you don't have to peel them and the price is reasonable compared to other stuff there if you're stuck eating lunch from 7-11.

It is more than twice the price of Wal-Mart! Well, I guess that's the price of convenience.

2/hard boiled eggs - $2.09 @ 7/11

6/hard boiled eggs - $2.96 @ Wal-Mart

6/raw eggs - $2.62 @ Wal-Mart

Next compare the price of a donut vs the price of a bag of flour and sugar ;)

You're paying for footprint. There's 320 Walmarts in California and almost 2000 7-Elevens. There's zero Walmarts in SF and San Mateo county, and at least 50-Elevens. Those 7-Elevens are often in premium locations downtown.

I am not sure I follow the discussion and its tie into California - I am in the South US

I just picked a market.

Nice. "Tea eggs" are big in East Asian corner stores.

Two hard-boiled eggs and an apple is a pretty nutritious lunch for about $2-$3 tops.

It’s cheap but not nutritious. It’s less than 300 cal and 12g of protein + 4g of fiber. You would be hungry. Need fiber and protein to keep you full

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